Anthony Albanese
Dear Commons Community,
For the second time in a week, voters in a prominent US ally angered by President Donald Trump punished conservatives and re-elected a left-leaning incumbent.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese was poised to win the largest victory for his center-left Labor Party since 1946, both in terms of two-party preferred and overall seat count. He’s the first Australian leader to win consecutive elections in more than two decades, and the only one to increase his party’s vote share after one term since World War II.
“We do not need to beg, or borrow, or copy from anywhere else,” Albanese said in his victory speech on Saturday night. “We do not seek our inspiration overseas. We find it right here, in our values and in our people.”
Similar to Canada’s election last week, the outcome in Australia would’ve been hard to predict just months earlier. Both ruling parties were on the ropes, with conservatives in both countries seeking to capitalize on the momentum of Trump’s solid election win in November.
Canada’s Prime Minister Mark Carney took to X on Saturday to congratulate Albanese on his win. “In an increasingly divided world, Canada and Australia are close partners and the most reliable of friends,” the newly re-elected prime minister said.
Loser Peter Dutton’s choice of MAGA-style policies, a broader pushback against conservatives and a swing toward stability by voters were all evidence of how Trump influenced Australia’s election, according to Steven Hamilton, assistant professor of economics at George Washington University.
“Without the Trump factor, I think Labor still would’ve got a majority, but I think Trump contributed to the vast margin that Albanese has secured,” Hamilton said. “It made things worse.”
Trump was deeply unpopular in Australia even before he placed broad tariffs on the nation’s exports. A poll by Redbridge in March found that 59% of voters surveyed had an unfavorable view of the US president.
Trump is deeply unpopular everywhere!
Congratulations, Mr. Albanese!
Tony
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