Mr Grant told the Daily Liberal his commitment to the people of Dubbo was as strong as ever.

“Despite stepping down as Nationals leader I will continue to proudly represent the electorate of Dubbo, where we have a strong record of delivering infrastructure and services that improve lives and we’ll continue to deliver,” he said.

“I consider it a privilege to do so.”

Earlier in the day Mr Grant announced via a statement he would stand down at Tuesday’s party room meeting, as Nationals candidate for Orange Scott Barrett was “facing an uphill battle to hold the seat”.

“It has been an incredible privilege to serve in that role and lead a team whose sole focus is to serve the people of regional NSW.”

Mr Grant became leader of the party in October 2014.

“At all times I have been guided by my principles of honesty, integrity and hard work but I accept the result in Orange is a clear message that we haven’t always got it right, nor have we always taken the community with us,” he said.

“Regional NSW is full of hard-working, decent people that want to see their Government supporting them and otherwise let them live their lives as they see fit.

“I hope that through my actions the NSW Government is given the opportunity to pause and reset the way it is seen to be governing and our record of delivery can once more be front and centre.

“I am proud of the results the NSW Liberals & Nationals have been able to achieve for regional NSW and the state since coming to power and it is vital that this continues.

“I thank those in the party, our branches and our communities for the trust and support they have shown me during my time as Leader.”

Skills Minister John Barilaro is likely to be elected deputy premier and leader of the NSW Nationals in Mr Grant's place.

Moments before Mr Grant released the statement, the Central Western Daily spoke to Mr Barrett in Orange.

At 11.30am on Monday, with 29,417 – or 49.2 per cent – of a possible 59,784 votes counted, both Mr Donato and Mr Barrett have won 11,031 preference votes.

14,340 votes from 20 of the electorate’s 38 polling booths have now been factored into the head-to-head count, along with 15,077 pre-poll and postal votes.

On Sunday senior Nationals NP Andrew Fraser said he would move a spill motion against the Deputy Premier at a party meeting on Tuesday.

However, at the time Mr Grant signalled his intention to stay on as party leader.

“The final byelection result isn’t known but the count so far delivers a strong message,” he said.

“The message for Macquarie Street is clear: government us there to support communities and otherwise, should just get out of people’s lives.

“It’s a privilege to serve as NSW Nationals leader and I intend to continue to do so.”