Election 2022 live: Peter Dutton a frontrunner to replace Scott Morrison after Labor wins majority
Peter Dutton is reportedly considering a tilt at the Liberal leadership, after Scott Morrison choked back tears and Anthony Albanese was mobbed as Labor secured a majority government.
Federal Election
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Australia’s outgoing defence minister Peter Dutton is considering a tilt at the Liberal leadership after the party suffered a major defeat at the polls, according to reports.
The former drug squad cop has been in cabinet since 2013 and retained the Queensland seat of Dickson, which he has held for more than two decades.
He is expected to announce his candidacy in a matter of days, according to reports in the Sydney Morning Herald and The Age.
Before the election Mr Dutton dodged speculation he was considering a run for leadership and instead told Channel 9 he was “in the moment”
“My head, to be honest, is very much in the moment,” he said.
Mr Dutton said his party remained a strong chance at the polls and was expecting upset wins across the country.
“I think it is incredibly tight,” he said.
But the party lost key seats in the election including the blue-ribbon seat of Higgins, to Labor.
It comes after Anthony Albanese was mobbed by supporters as Labor wins a majority government, while Scott Morrison has choked back tears in church as he made his final comments as PM.
Mr Morrison got emotional while addressing his fellow churchgoers on Sunday morning, speaking of his faith, with his voice breaking as he said he was "very pleased that the last thing I say as PM is here".
"God calls us – whether you're a Prime Minister or a pastor, or running a business, teaching in schools, working in the police force, it doesn't matter," he said.
"We're all called to trust and obey and that's the life of faith He calls us to."
Mr Morrison confirmed on Saturday night that he would tender his resignation as Liberal party leader, but would continue to serve as the member for Cook.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister-elect Mr Albanese enjoyed a coffee with his partner Jodie Haydon and dog Toto surrounded by locals this morning.
Labor has enough seats to form a majority government, The Australian is projecting.
A batch of new seats were called this morning, pushing Labor to 77, one more than the 76 required and averting the prospect of a minority government.
Among the races called on Sunday were the Sydney seat of Bennelong, where Labor’s Jerome Laxale is the likely winner over the Liberals’ Simon Kennedy, and the Victorian seat of Deakin where Michael Sukkar has been unseated by Matt Gregg.
Only four seats remain in doubt – Lyons, TAS (ALP), Menzies, VIC (LIB), Moore, WA (LIB) and Sturt, SA (LIB).
In other news:
• Mr Albanese will be sworn in as Australia’s next prime minister on Monday before heading to the Quad leaders’ summit in Tokyo on Tuesday where he’ll meet US president Joe Biden
• UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson has congratulated Mr Albanese, tweeting: “I look forward to working with you as we reap the rewards of our comprehensive Free Trade Agreement, the AUKUS partnership and the unmatched closeness between the British and Australian people.”
• Scott Morrison left Kirribilli House for the first time since losing the election this morning, while the Coalition considers whether it should split.
• Treasurer Josh Frydenberg is clinging to hope for an unlikely win in his seat as he attacked climate change warriors.
• Simon Birmingham has left the door open for a Coalition split, as the Liberal Party begins its post-mortem of the election wipe-out.
• Incoming Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles says Labor is still hopeful it can achieve a majority government in its own right, but is prepared to work with the crossbench if need be.
• Barnaby Joyce has blasted the teal independents as ‘selfish’
• The teals have vowed they are not going away as a community movement with one of their star candidates welcoming the addition of more women.
PM IN WAITING MOBBED BY SUPPORTERS
Anthony Albanese has made his first official business as Prime Minister a casual coffee with a hundred of his closest friends.
Seated outside at Double Roasters outside the Marrickville library, Mr Albanese and partner Jodie Haydon chatted away with campaign volunteers and newly minted Reid MP Sally Sitou.
Mr Albanese said his son Nathan wanted to be there but “he’s 21 and he’s off doing 21 year old stuff”.
What started off as a small gathering quickly grew as passers-by got word that the new Prime Minister was seated at their local.
While it was a late night of celebrating for Mr Albanese, he told the crowd that he sent a call from music legend Jimmy Barnes to voicemail.
“I have never taken a phone call at 3:29am,” he joked.
Mr Albanese confirmed he will be sworn as Prime Minister tomorrow before jetting off to Tokyo for the Quad leaders summit.
But when does he plan on moving into the Lodge or Kirribilli House? Mr Albanese said he is in no rush and that Scott Morrison and Jenny should take as long as they need to move back to the Shire.
ALBANESE IN DAY OF BRIEFINGS
Mr Albanese will spend his first day in the role receiving briefings ahead of his official swearing in ceremony on Monday.
Speaking to reporters briefly outside of the Marrickville Library, the Labor leader described his election victory as a “big moment” not just for himself but for the country.
“It was a big moment last night. It’s something that’s a big moment in my life but what I want it to be is a big moment for the country,” he said.
“I want to change the country, I want to change the way politics works in this country.”
Mr Albanese received a heroes welcome in Marrickville on Sunday, where he met with supporters and newly minted Reid MP Sally Sitou for a casual coffee hangout.
But the crowd surrounding the Labor leader soon came to grow as word got out the Prime Minister elect was having a chat to his community.
“I’m just a Marrickville guy,” Mr Albanese joked. “(I’m) very happy to represent this amazing community.”
Deputy Richard Marles, Penny Wong, Jim Chalmers and Katy Gallagher will all be sworn in alongside Mr Albanese on Monday.
He said they are set to take on additional interim portfolios until next week when the caucus will meet.
But before that can happen he will be whisked off to Japan for the Quad leaders meeting. Mr Albanese said his presence will enable Australia to send a “message to the world”.
“There is a change of government, there will be some changes in policy, particularly with regard to climate change and our engagement with the world on those issues and I look forward to the meetings that have been organised,” he said.
His first order of business for his return on Wednesday will be to organise a meeting to be held face-to-face with the state premiers and chief ministers.
“I want to have a cooperative relationship. I want to bring people together,” he said. Meanwhile, Sally Sitou acknowledged Labor will need to reflect on how it picks candidates going forward after the loss of Kristina Keneally in Fowler.
“I think that there'll be things that we need to reflect on,” she told reporters in Marrickville.
“There ought to be a place for people from different backgrounds in our parliament, and something that the Labor Party should really think about.”
She said her win in Reid proved that the community wanted to see candidates reflect the community they are seeking to represent.
‘INHERITING TRICKIEST ECONOMY SINCE WORLD WAR II’
Australia’s next Treasurer Jim Chalmers said he felt a sense of responsibility with the nation facing “dire economic challenges”.
“This will be the trickiest conditions an incoming treasury has inherited since World War II,” Mr Chalmers said from his Logan home.
“Inflation is skyrocketing, real wages are falling and there’s substantial pressure on the budget with $1 trillion in debt.
“We intend to implement our commitments, we intend to start with these challenges straight away, but we’re realistic about how long it will take to turn these challenges around.”
Mr Chalmers, Labor’s most senior federal MP in Queensland, said he would bring a perspective to the Cabinet table and Treasury from outside the Sydney-Melbourne-Canberra triangle.
“I’m a Queenslander born and bred, but I want to be a Treasurer for the whole country,” he said.
“Being from the suburbs in general and being from Logan particularly means that I have an understanding of the realities of life in communities like ours.
“For me personally, there’s a real sense of responsibility for the hard task ahead.”
‘SIGNIFICANT CHALLENGES AHEAD’: OUTGOING TREASURER
Treasurer Josh Frydenberg is clinging to hope for an unlikely win in his seat as he attacked climate change warriors.
The former treasurer said although it was “very, very difficult” to retain the seat he would wait for the postal vote count.
“With 16,000 postal votes still to count in Kooyong, about 12 per cent of the overall vote, it is mathematically possible that I could retain Kooyong,” he said.
Mr Frydenberg also took aim at the environmental culture wars – declaring climate change was not a religion but many voters did not understand the Coalition’s achievements on cutting emissions.
“Australia has not been well served by the culture wars on climate change,’’ he said.
“Whether you believe in it or don't believe in it, climate change is not a religion.
“It needs to be dealt with from a perspective of engineering, economics and also environmental science.”
“We need, as a Coalition, to be better at articulating what we have achieved and what we are doing with respect to climate change.
Mr Frydenberg said lessons had to be learned within the Liberal Party after their historic loss on Saturday evening.
The former treasurer said it had been particularly challenging for his party in Victoria for many years.
"It actually goes back to Andrew Peacock's time, before we were winning the majority of seats here.
"There were swings to the Coalition in some of the other suburban seats, and there are probably various factors at play there.
But clearly there is a bit of introspection and a lot of analysis about the result at the federal level here in Victoria.
"We can learn lessons not only for our own federal election, which comes around in three years' time, but for the next state election before the end of the year.
"Again, there will be a time to analyse the results and go through the lessons to be learned, clearly, the people have spoken.
"And the Coalition needs to hear what has been said and to act on it."
Mr Frydenberg said he was proud of what he had achieved as Treasurer, deputy Liberal leader and for his local electorate.
He said Australia was looking at the prospect of two million Australians being unemployed as a result of the Covid pandemic.
Mr Frydenberg said Australia’s unemployment rate of 3.9 per cent was the envy of the world while the $100 billion budget turnaround was the biggest in more than 70 years.
He said the government had invested in key initiatives in education, health, disability services, women’s safety, defence and national security.
But he said Australia faced significant challenges ahead both for the economy and national security. “I wish my colleagues on both sides all the very best.’’
MORRISON DRIVEN OUT OF KIRRIBILLI
Mr Morrison has been seen leaving Kirribilli House for the first time since losing the election.
The outgoing PM was filmed being driven from his official Sydney residence shortly before 9am on Sunday.
He left in a three-car convoy that travelled past the gaggle of journalists, photographers and camera operators stationed outside the gates.
Mr Morrison didn't stop to speak to the media, as reporters speculated whether he was on his way to church or back to his local electorate of Cook, which he held onto amid the Liberals' historic loss.
Mr Morrison announced last night he would step down as Liberal leader after leading the Coalition to an election defeat after almost a decade in government.
FRENCH CELEBRATING DEMISE OF MORRISON
The world is reacting to Australia kicking out Mr Morrison and choosing Mr Albanese as its 31st Prime Minister.
After Mr Morrison’s relationship with France turned frosty over the axing of the French submarine program for the AUKUS deal, the nation’s outgoing foreign affairs minister Jean-Yves Le Drian didn’t hold back in rubbing it in.
“I can’t stop myself from saying that the defeat of Morrison suits me very well,” he said at a ceremony in Paris where he handed over to successor, Catherine Colonna.
He said he hoped France “can resume frank and constructive dialogue with Australia in the future” and also noted Mr Morrison’s conduct with the submarine deal “brutality and cynicism, and I would even be tempted to say of unequivocal incompetence”.
Billionaire businessman and climate campaigner Twiggy Forrest also issued a statement congratulating Mr Albanese,
“For a long time Australia has been a climate laggard,” he said.
“Frankly it has been embarrassing.
“Our children deserve our leadership, our understanding of science, and frankly they haven’t had it.
“Australia has the highest per capita coal emissions in the G20 – and in the world – at 5.34 tonnes of CO2 per year.
“The average Australian emits 5x more CO2 from coal power than the average person globally, and almost 2x as much as the average person in China.”
He said he’d chosen to take matters into his own hands by rapidly transitioning to green energy at Fortescue.
“We now hope to see a more forward leaning climate change policy from Australia. We are pushing ahead to turn Australia into a green energy superpower,” he said.
THE SEATS STILL IN DOUBT
Only four seats remain in doubt – Lyons, TAS (ALP), Menzies, VIC (LIB), Moore, WA (LIB) and Sturt, SA (LIB).
Liberal MP Tim Wilson formally conceded Goldstein to independent candidate Zoe Daniel on Sunday. He has thanked the voters of Goldstein and his staff. He became emotional when he thanked his husband, Ryan Bolger. “You’ve sacrificed so much for my service I want to say thank you,” he said. Queensland Labor MP Terri Butler conceded defeat on Sunday afternoon amid the ‘Greenslide’ in inner-city Brisbane.
Ms Butler, on social media, said on the current count it “seems clear that I will not be returned as the member for Griffith”.
“I wish the new member well in delivering on all the promises he has made,” she said.
Ms Butler, Labor’s spokeswoman on the environment, has held the seat of Griffith since the 2010 by-election sparked by the resignation of former Prime Minister Kevin Rudd.
Results in the seat so far show a significant swing away from the LNP to the Greens, pushing Ms Butler to third place.
LABOR SECURES MAJORITY GOVERNMENT
Before winning majority on Sunday afternoon, incoming Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles said Labor was still hopeful it could achieve a majority government in its own right, but was prepared to work with the crossbench if need be.
Mr Marles says Anthony Albanese is “enormously skilled” at bringing people together, and Labor is confident that the agenda it has laid out can get through parliament.
“We are not going to do the kind of decisive legislation that we’ve seen from Scott Morrison over the last decade which has … divided the country,” Mr Marles told ABC’s Insiders.
“Anthony wants to bring the country together, and that will be reflected in the way in which we approach the parliament and we are confident that we can get the agenda through parliament.”
Mr Marles said the Labor Party would not enter into any deals with minor parties or independents, which would mean the party would rely on ongoing co-operation from the booming crossbench.
Mr Marles has also confirmed he will not be on the plane bound for Tokyo for the Quad meeting this week, and will stay home to be acting Prime Minister-elect while Mr Albanese meets with senior world leaders.
He has remained tight-lipped over what his portfolio would be.
COULD THE COALITION SPLIT?
Simon Birmingham has left the door open for a Coalition split, as the Liberal Party begins its post-mortem of the election wipe-out.
A swathe of moderate Liberal seats have been lost to climate-driven independents and Greens candidates, suggesting middle-Australia was unhappy with the climate target set by the Coalition.
Senator Birmingham conceded the Coalition had lost support given its small climate target, which was the result of Liberals bending to the Nation party over net zero.
He added the Coalition did need to embrace a higher 2030 target.
When asked by ABC Insiders host David Speers whether the Coalition should “stick together or break apart”, Senator Birmingham would not be drawn.
“The Coalition has served Australia very well through our history … I would hope that we can continue to work together,” Senator Birmingham told ABC.
“Obviously the National Party needs to look at where the Liberal Party has felt this pain and reflect upon how it is that we, together, can manage to form a majority government in the future and what will be necessary for us to do so.”
Speers prodded further, asking Senator Birmingham to rule out a Coalition split.
“The Liberal Party needs to always stand for Liberal values,” Senator Birmingham responded.
“We need to make sure we win back voters who should hold those Liberal values.”
SO WHY DID SCO-MO LOSE THE ELECTION?
Outspoken columnist Andrew Bolt has described the election result as a ‘sick joke’ while Tony Abbott’s former chief of staff Peta Credlin has warned the only way for the Liberals to regain their old heartland is to move further to the right.
“The expression of such a deep electoral disillusionment is an extraordinary development and one that will deliver a blow to the existing Australian political architecture with implications for years to come,’’ Credlin, a host for Sky News writes.
“This is the big story of this election, with a left wing dominated crossbench of anywhere up to a dozen. The rejection of both the Liberal party and Labor on this scale, the corresponding shift toward independent and minor parties, on both the left and right, is without precedent.
Andrew Bolt, no fan of climate change activists, said Australians had ‘replaced a prime minister with no vision with a Socialist Left leader with no clue’.
“But worse, our new Prime Minister, Anthony Albanese, will now need the Greens’ help to get his crazier plans through parliament — and that support will come at a nasty price.”
Ellen Whinnett, News Corp Network's investigations editor and a Walkley-winning journalist, wrote Mr Morrison’s promise to change his ways failed to resonate with the electorate.
“One Liberal MP likened him to a bad boyfriend promising to do better. Focus groups considered Anthony Albanese was the “best of a bad lot”, though voters had doubts about his ability to do the job. The Coalition was unable to stop the six-week campaign turning into a referendum on Mr Morrison’s character, and his last-minute promise to show a more empathetic side failed to turn the tide.
RYAN WAITING FOR CALL FROM TREASURER
Treasurer Josh Frydenberg is expected to be the biggest casualty as the Liberal Party was smashed in their historic heartland by so-called teal independents.
His opponent Dr Monique Ryan told Nine on Sunday she was "excited to have the opportunity to make things better in Canberra for the people of Kooyong and the people of Australia".
Dr Ryan said she had not received a call from Mr Frydenberg yet to concede the seat as of 8.30am on Sunday.
"We aren't calling it a win just yet, because I haven't received a call from Mr Frydenberg at all just yet, so I don't want to get ahead of myself, but it does feel like the climate has changed in Kooyong," she told ABC Breakfast.
"I'm hoping that things will continue on as they have along the same sort of trend, that we will end up with a 53-54 per cent. two-party preferred position."
She quoted Hunters and Collectors song Holy Grail. "Woke up this morning from the strangest dream. I was in the biggest (teal) army that the world has ever seen. We were marching for … so many things. And now it begins."
Dr Ryan said she thought the rise of the independents would become permanent in elections.
"I think that this is going to be a permanent sort of a change, not just a protest against one thing, it's a statement of position and what the electorate of Kooyong wants from its elected representative from now on."
Dr Ryan said having more women in parliament would "improve the tenor of discussion".
"I've been saying to people throughout this campaign I wouldn't let my 21-year- old daughter work in Parliament House because I wouldn't be able to feel secure she was safe there.
"I think that having more women there and more women who are not career politicians who have life experience in other important sectors like health will improve the tenor of political discussion, hopefully, in this country. "And that will bring a degree of pragmatism and less partisanship that will improve the political conversation for the nation."
LABOR VOTE DOWN TO LESS THAN A THIRD
On Saturday night, Labor’s primary vote was a paltry 31.9 per cent – down from 33.34 per cent three years ago and on track to be the lowest since early last century. The Coalition was on 35.4 per cent.
But Labor insiders were hopeful a red wave in Western Australia would be enough to help them reach the magic number of 76 seats required for a majority.
At 10.50pm, Mr Morrison conceded defeat and congratulated Mr Albanese.
A teary Labor leader said he was “humbled by this victory and I’m honoured to be given the opportunity to serve as the 31st Prime Minister of Australia”.
“It says a lot about our great country that the son of a single mum who was a disability pensioner who grew up in public housing down the road in Camperdown can stand before you tonight as Australia’s Prime Minister,” Mr Albanese said.
“I hope that my journey in life inspires Australians to reach for the stars.”
He vowed to bring Australians together and leave no one behind after what he said were years of division.
“I want to find that common ground where together we can plant our dreams,” Mr Albanese said.
“No matter how you voted today, my government will respect every one of you every day, and I’ll seek to get your vote next time.”
Mr Morrison told party faithful he would step down as the Liberal leader but remain in parliament as the member for Cook.
“There are many votes still to count … But I believe it’s very important that this country has certainty,” Mr Morrison said.
He said the past few years had been a “time of great upheaval” which Australians had felt deeply, flowing through to both parties “having one of the lowest primary votes we’ve ever seen”.
“I think it is important for our nation to heal and to move forward,” Mr Morrison said.
The blame game started early within the government, with moderate Liberals blaming Mr Morrison’s unpopularity for costing them seats including Mr Frydenberg’s electorate of Kooyong, plus Goldstein in Victoria and Mackellar, Wentworth and North Sydney in NSW.
The crossbench looked likely to expand from seven to as many as 16 MPs, as voters rejected the Prime Minister’s warning that electing more independents would lead to uncertainty and chaos in parliament.
Coalition campaign spokesman Simon Birmingham said the big swings away from the two major parties had created “a lot of confusion in the results” and meant it was “not showing as a classic change election”.
But senior Labor frontbencher Tanya Plibersek said: “A win’s a win’s a win … I don’t think anyone’s going to be complaining about the primary vote.”
Early results from WA revealed double-digit swings to Labor, positioning the opposition to claim as many as four seats from the government in Swan, Pearce, Hasluck and even Tangney.
Labor performed strongly in Victoria as it claimed Higgins and Chisholm from Liberal MPs.
Big swings against the Liberal Party also shocked the government in Deakin and Menzies, with the results in both going down to the wire, while Corangamite moved strongly in their favour despite several campaign visits from Mr Morrison.
Labor was also expected to pick up Boothby in South Australia and Reid and Robertson in NSW, although former state premier Kristina Keneally was facing an uphill battle to complete her switch to the lower house as she trailed independent Dai Le.
The Greens performed strongly in Queensland, where they were set to win Ryan and potentially Griffith from the Liberals and Labor respectively. Leader Adam Bandt declared it was “a Green-slide”, with Brisbane, Macnamara and Richmond also in doubt.
Climate 200 founder Simon Holmes a Court said voters in inner city electorates had “seen through the fake moderates” in the Liberal Party and elected a series of teal independents.
Senator Birmingham – a leader of the Liberal moderate faction – said it was a “clear problem” that the party was losing the heartland seats that had “defined the Liberal Party for generations”.
Defence Minister Peter Dutton was expected to hang on to his seat of Dickson after a close race, positioning him as the favourite to take over as the Liberal leader.
Mr Albanese said his government would “end the climate wars”, deliver on the Uluru Statement from the Heart and implement a federal anti-corruption commission.
One of his first acts will be to attend the Quad leaders’ summit in Tokyo next week with the leaders of Japan, India and the United States.
Mr Albanese said he and key members of his team would be sworn in on Monday to enable the transition to power and enable the overseas trip.
“I am here not to occupy the space but to make a positive difference each and every day,” Mr Albanese said.
“I want every parent to be able to tell their child, no matter where you live or where you come from, that in Australia the doors of opportunity are open to us all.”
LIBERALS LOSE SMARTEST MODERATES
Liberal senator Jane Hume said her party had lost some of its "most intellectual powerhouses" in the moderate MPs who were swept from power by the "teal" independents.
The once blue ribbon Liberal seats of Mackellar, Wentworth, North Sydney and possibly Curtin in Western Australia and Kooyong in Melbourne are set to fall to independent women candidates.
Speaking to Sky News the morning after the election, Senator Hume said the future looked to be "really tough" for Liberals that were not "on the fringes of the party".
"We have lost, not moderate Liberals – that's probably the wrong way of looking at it – we've lost some of our most intellectual powerhouses," she said.
"These are people that we were looking to for policy solutions and we're going to have to rethink that." Senator Hume said the Liberal Party had "probably got it wrong on a number of fronts" and there was much reflection to be done after its historic loss to Labor.
"I think we should gut the chicken properly before we read the entrails," she said.
MELTDOWN OVER JENNY MORRISON’S ‘TEAL’ DRESS
Jenny Morrison has stunned in a teal-coloured dress that raised eyebrows among eagle-eyed social media users who couldn’t help but notice the irony.
The wife of outgoing Prime Minister Scott Morrison wore a Carla Zampatti dress in front of supporters as her husband conceded defeat to Labor’s Anthony Albanese on Saturday night.
While that by itself is not unusual, it is when you consider that the Liberals largely lost the election in a so-called “teal” bloodbath led by independents sporting light blue colours.
Among those was independent Allegra Spender from the eastern Sydney seat of Wentworth, who booted out Liberal MP Dave Sharma. Ironically, Carla Zampatti is Allegra Spender’s late mother.
Labor’s Jason Clare claimed “the teals are eating the Liberal Party alive”.
Social media predictably went into a frenzy over the dress.
Jenny Morrison looking resplendent in … light teal … Carla Zampatti? pic.twitter.com/lY3NgdzFVY
— Jenna Clarke (@jennamclarke) May 21, 2022
National fashion editor for Nine newspapers Melissa Singer noted that the dress was called “the celebration dress” on Carla Zampatti’s website.
BARNABY UNLEASHES ON ‘SELFISH INDEPENDENTS’
Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce has unleashed on the “teal” independent candidates who are challenging a number of moderate Liberal MPs across the country, calling them “selfish” and “self-indulgent”.
Mr Joyce said he was “angry” about their campaign against the government. “If you believe independents are the way to go – I’m so angry with this. Because it’s self-indulgent and selfish,” Mr Joyce vented on the ABC.
“If you believe independents are the way to go, let’s have 151 of them (there are 151 seats in the parliament). Let’s have total chaos in our nation’s parliament. And we all know we would be a laughing stock.
“So it’s almost a sense of, if you vote Labor you’ll vote and stick there, and we know you will because of party discipline. If you vote Nationals or Liberals you’ll vote and stick there.
‘And then, ‘We have a right in the middle to go whichever way we want whenever we like.’ That is just so, so selfish.”
At one point in the interview, it was pointed out that Mr Joyce himself had “crossed the floor against the Howard government, I think, more than any human being in the history of floor crossing”.
Mr Joyce said he “never contemplated not giving confidence” to the government, even in his “early days as a backbencher”.
WHO IS AUSTRALIA’S NEW ‘FIRST LADY’?
Australia’s new “First Lady’’ Jodie Haydon is expected to continue to pursue her career, after partner Anthony Albanese secured the keys to the Lodge. Ms Haydon is the women’s officer for the NSW Public Service Association, a job she took up in February.
The 43-year-old, who has been dating the new prime minister since late 2019, plans to largely stay out of politics, and has previously told News Corp that “my job will be to focus on my day job and allow Anthony to focus on his”.
Mr Albanese, 59, was previously married to former NSW deputy premier Carmel Tebbutt, with whom he has a 21-year-old son, Nathan.
While a number of world leaders, including New Zealand prime minister Jacinda Ardern, are unmarried, it is still relatively rare in Australia, despite our largely secular community.
The last unmarried couple in the Lodge was Australia’s first female prime minister, Julia Gillard, and her then-partner Tim Mathieson, who was dubbed the First Bloke, in 2010.
Australia does not have an official “First Lady’’ designated in the same way the United States does, but the spouse of the prime minister does hold special status. More on Jodie Haydon here
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Originally published as Election 2022 live: Peter Dutton a frontrunner to replace Scott Morrison after Labor wins majority
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