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Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s approval rating as the preferred prime minister has plunged once again to where it was before he surprised everyone by winning election in 2022
This comes after a noisy week of trade union protests and the emergence of the Greens as a viable candidate for the working class.
According to the Newspoll survey, the major parties remain split at 50-50 on a two-party-preferred basis, but this is the data provided when respondents are only given two options to choose from.
With Greens MP Max Chandler-Mather rallying in support behind the embattled CFMEU construction union last Tuesday, voters appear to have been left disorientated by this new environmentally-friendly brand of class politics that the Greens have extended to them.
When it comes to preferred leader, The Prime Minister’s slump in The Australian’s Newspoll survey has brought his standing on par with Opposition Leader Peter Dutton at a net satisfaction rating of minus 13.
Things have not been this grim for Albanese since November 2023 after the last interest rate rise. The political analysts speculating about this polling data seem to ignore the fact that Labor were able to oust an incumbent Liberal PM with very similar numbers.
However, that was when Albanese was up against Scott Morrison, a man that even the Liberals will agree may have been our worst Prime Minister since Billy Hughes.
But do voters think Dutton is any better than the last Liberal leader?
Despite the Prime Minister’s considerable drop, Peter Dutton’s approval rating has continued to slide even lower. Dropping one point to 39 per cent – with a disapproval rating rising two points to 52 per cent.
In what would usually be cause for celebration for the Liberal Opposition, Albanese’s drop in the polls is actually pretty concerning- especially when considering that Dutton poll numbers remain even lower than the PM.
These leaves the door open for even more fracturing of the two-party system, with a new stable of Teal Candidates making moves on Liberal-held seats, and the new Greens becoming far more palatable to Queensland voters. Not to mention the existing threats from Katter, Lambie and whatever remains of Clive Palmer’s political movement.
But then again, it could also mean a renaissance for Pauline Hanson and whatever conspiracists she can recruit to briefly run for One Nation before they immediately resign from the party and stick around as an unhelpful independents for another term.
These independent threats could hurt Labor, but they could also kill the Liberals. The opposition can only hope that Albo’s numbers improve or else this whole two party racket is over for all of them.
