Albanese takes centre stage, finds his footing and claims victory

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The stage at the Canterbury-Hurlstone Park RSL was about a metre high – very fall-off-able, for leaders prone to such things.

He kept his footing, but the prime minister practically levitated off the stage, in front of three flags very deliberately placed behind him – the Australian, the Aboriginal and the Torres Strait Islander banners – his preferences in sharp contrast to those of the man he had just trounced.

Introduced by crowd favourite Penny Wong, and flanked by his son Nathan and his fiancee Jodie Haydon, Albanese faced the party faithful, who cheered loudly enough to blow the roof off the room.

But his message was for a broader audience.

“My fellow Australians,” he said.

“Serving as your prime minister is the greatest honour of my life, and it is with a deep sense of humility and a profound sense of responsibility that the first thing I do tonight is to say thank you to the people of Australia for the chance to continue to serve the best nation on earth.”

Albanese celebrates with Penny Wong, his son Nathan and fiancee Jodie Haydon.Credit: Alex Ellinghausen

They were adoring and triumphant. They were stuffed with Albo Pale Ale (made by a local brewer and trucked in by the case), and buoyed by schadenfreude – Albanese tried to stamp this out when the crowd cheered at mention of Peter Dutton’s loss.

“No,” he said to the Dutton detractors.

“No. What we do in Australia is we treat people with respect.”

He was gracious in victory, and so what if graciousness comes more easily when you have won a greater majority, and your opponent has been wiped off the electoral map?

“I was raised to be an optimist ... my mother taught me to always be positive and to see the best in people,” he said.

“We have so much reason to be optimistic ... truly, there is nowhere else you would rather be than right here in Australia.”

Albanese certainly gave no signs of wanting to be anywhere else, although in paying tribute to his local community – Sydney’s inner west, where he has lived his whole life – he did say “I’m sorry, I won’t be moving back for a little while”.

This was not just a re-election, the first one for any Australian prime minister in 20 years.

It was a vindication and an affirmation of the prime minister’s self-made mythology as a battler who fights best when his back is against the wall.

A few months ago, Albanese was cranky and drifting in the polls. Dutton was in the ascendancy.

But then the fight – the election campaign – began. And he boxed his way out of a probable loss.

Three years ago, he had stood on the same stage, on election night 2022, to claim the prime ministership in front of a room so packed he had trouble threading his way through the crowd.

Then, he had travelled to the RSL from his Marrickville home just a few streets away.

This time, he departed from Kirribilli House, driving across the bridge to Sydney’s inner west in a Comcar.

Then, he spoke of his first priority as prime minister – the Voice referendum. This time, talk of Aboriginal policy was further down the list, but he made a point of acknowledging the traditional owners and paying his respects to elders, “today and every day”.

Anthony Albanese will return to Canberra with a larger majority.Credit: Alex Ellinghausen

This time, he exuded confidence and certainty, the aura of a man who knows he has cemented his power and consolidated his authority. He brought his favourite prop with him - his Medicare card.

“This card,” he said, “is not Labor red or Liberal blue. It is green and gold”.

The card, he said, was “a declaration of our national values in our national colours”.

No coincidence, then, that he has worked hard during the campaign to associate the Medicare card with brand Labor and brand Albo.

His opponents would even say he misled voters in the process.

Albanese did not mention US President Donald Trump, arguably the man he owed most for this astounding victory. But he did have a jab at members of the opposition accused of aping the US president.

“We do not need to beg or borrow or copy from anywhere else,” he said.

“We do not seek our inspiration overseas.”

“With pride and purpose, optimism and determination, faith in the fair go and faith in each other we return to the work of building Australia’s future.”

In 2022, Albanese tried to make his way to his friends in the crowd, but in 2025, the weight of the prime ministership had already descended on him, and he couldn’t get through the thicket of people.

This time, he didn’t try. He exited backstage and left the venue a small time later. Back to Kirribilli House. Back to work.

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