Australia's most populous state heads to the ballot box on Saturday, so in this week's Squiz Shortcut, we take a look at the vibe after 12 years of Coalition government, the relative newbies battling to be Premier, and the big pitches and promises of their campaigns.

Squiz recommends:

ABC election analyst Antony Green on where the NSW election will be decided

Deborah Snow's feature profiles on Dominic Perrottet and Chris Minns