SYDNEY: Australia’s left-leaning Prime Minister Anthony Albanese triumphed Saturday in national elections, crushing his conservative rival in a contest swayed by economic upheaval and Donald Trump.
Albanese’s slow-but-steady leadership resonated at a time of global tumult, analysts said, with voters deserting hard-nosed opposition leader Peter Dutton in droves.
Dutton said he had called the prime minister to congratulate him on the win.
“We didn’t do well enough during this campaign. That much is obvious tonight and I accept full responsibility,” he told supporters.
Not only was Albanese’s Labor Party on track for an unexpectedly large parliamentary majority, but former police officer Dutton faced the rare humiliation of losing his seat.
Elated Labor supporters swigged craft beers emblazoned with Albanese’s face at an election party in Sydney, chanting his “Albo” nickname as results were declared on TV.
“This could be a big win for Labor,” said respected election analyst Antony Green from national broadcaster ABC.
Albanese has promised to embrace renewable energy, tackle a worsening housing crisis, and pour money into a creaking healthcare system.
Dutton wanted to slash immigration, crack down on crime and ditch a longstanding ban on nuclear power.
US President Trump cast a long shadow over the six-week election campaign, sparking keen global interest in whether his tariff-induced economic chaos would influence the result.
“In times of instability, we expect people to go back to a kind of steady incumbent,” University of Sydney politics lecturer Henry Maher told AFP.
Dutton’s policy to slash the public service rankled as similar cuts, led by Elon Musk, brought chaos in the United States.
And his flagship policy to dot the country with nuclear reactors was also widely seen as a liability.
Hungry voters munched on barbecued “democracy sausages” after casting their ballot — a polling day rite of passage — while others in bright swimwear crammed into booths after taking an early morning plunge.
Before the first vote was even counted, speculation was already mounting over whether Dutton could survive an election loss.
Some pre-vote polls showed Dutton leaking support because of Trump, who he praised this year as a “big thinker” with “gravitas” on the global stage.
“I mean, Donald Trump is as mad as a cut snake, and we all know that,” said voter Alan Whitman, 59, before casting his ballot on Saturday.
“And we’ve got to tiptoe around that.”
Voting is compulsory, enforced with fines of Aus$20 (US$13), leading to turnouts that top 90 percent.
As Australians soured on Trump, both Dutton and Albanese took on a more pugnacious tone.
“If I needed to have a fight with Donald Trump or any other world leader, to advance our nation’s interest, I’d do it in a heartbeat,” Dutton said in April.
Albanese condemned Trump’s tariffs as an act of “economic self-harm” and “not the act of a friend”.
Economic concerns have dominated the contest for the many Australian households struggling to pay inflated prices for milk, bread, power and petrol.
“The cost of living — it’s extremely high at the moment. So, taxes as well, is also another really big thing. Petrol prices, all the basic stuff,” human resources manager Robyn Knox told AFP in Brisbane.
Small business owner Jared Bell had similar concerns.
“Our grocery shops are definitely way more expensive than they were a couple years ago,” he said.
Albanese’s government has embraced the global push towards decarbonisation, warning of a future in which iron ore and polluting coal exports no longer prop up the economy.
The 36-day campaign was a largely staid affair but there were a few moments of unscripted levity.
Albanese tumbled backwards off the stage at a heaving campaign rally, while Dutton drew blood when he hit an unsuspecting cameraman in the head with a stray football.
