Voters without uni degrees choose coalition over Labor and the Greens
Labor and the Greens could be spending a lifetime in opposition, a new poll has found, with workers without a tertiary education switching to the coalition in droves.
NSW
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A giant swing of non-graduate voters has consigned Labor and the Greens to a lifetime in opposition, a new poll has found.
The Australian Population Research Institute (TAPRI) survey found that Labor and the Greens were supported by a noisy champagne socialist class of graduates with enormous influence in education and the media.
“The problem for the left and the greens is that currently non graduates make up 75 per cent of the electorate and they favour the coalition,” TAPRI head Bob Birrell said. “Left leaning parties are destined to continue in opposition.”
The poll showed that since the 1990s the majority of Australians without a degree switched their vote from left to right.
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Since 2001 an average of 56 per cent of non graduate voters have voted for parties on the right while 54 per cent of graduates have voted Labor or Green.
Mr Birrell said the biggest swing came in the 1996 election when traditional blue collar Labor voters turned to John Howard in revolt against Paul Keating’s big picture multicultural approach.
The issue of a “Big Australia” powered by migrant intakes has become one of the key concerns for voters. The TAPRI poll found more than seventy per cent of Aussies felt the country does not need more people.
That view was shared almost equally between overseas born voters and those born here.
More than half of those polled did not believe that migration was good because it fuelled cultural diversity and only three out of 10 agreed with the Federal Treasury argument that we need more immigration to promote economic growth.
The poll found seven out of 10 voters who think migration is too high now fear Australia is in danger of losing its own culture and identity.
The issue has helped drive non-graduate voters to the coalition, where “they could at least find some shelter from the diversity advocates”.
“Given the Coalition’s increased dependence on non-graduate voters, this means that most of its political base now opposes a Big Australia,” Mr Birrell said.
In keeping with the poll, builder and Liberal supporter John Thew believes there should be a moratorium on immigration for the next two years to allow the government to focus on getting Australians into jobs as the economy recovers from the coronavirus recession.
“The government could decrease immigration and focus on growing the local population. We need to be more selective about immigration,” he said.
Meanwhile UTS architecture student Goldie Karp, 19, said: “I vote Labor because climate change is something I’m passionate about and making sure people are aware of that.”
She said her parents were Liberal voters but added: “I surround myself with a lot of people who have the same values as me. I’m a part of a left wing youth movement. We talk about climate change, feminism.”
In line with graduates in the TAPRI poll she is also pro-migration. “I think it’s a human right that everyone should be equally treated. You don’t know where they are coming from. People assume that if they come to Australia it’ll create an unsafe environment which isn’t fair.”
University of Sydney student Eden Cohen, 20, said: “I vote Labor because a lot of their social policies are things I resonate with. Climate change is a massive issue and I don’t think the Liberal government is resolving that,” she said.
“People used to vote based more on economic policies and it made sense that people with university degrees would vote Liberal. Nowadays it’s becoming a lot more about social policies. Labor has more equality in their policies,” she said.