Anthony Albanese to tap into voter frustration as he looks towards the federal election

Anthony Albanese may have a new look but will this improve his chances come the federal election?

Anthony Albanese laughs when you ask him about his new look – and if he switched his dad glasses to a trendier pair of specs as a point of difference to Scott Morrison.

He says the switch up came about after he stepped on his old pair and is quick to downplay reports the makeover is a result of a pre-election focus group.

“I just picked them pretty quickly, myself. They’re the first pair I tried on and I looked at,” the Opposition Leader said.

Much has been written about Mr Albanese’s new pair of glasses and his trimmed-down figure. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Flavio Brancaleone

“I’ve been surprised by the amount of discussion that has ensued.”

Speaking exclusively to NCA NewsWire ahead of a bumper year, Mr Albanese doesn’t want the focus to be on him but on the Prime Minister.

“I think he's wearing thin with the Australian population,” he said.

Privately, party figures acknowledge that voters who are switching off Mr Morrison aren’t necessarily lining up to support Labor.

While recent polls suggest that the Prime Minister is the underdog, Labor has not forgotten the stinging upset that was Mr Morrison’s 2019 “miracle”.

The Labor leader claims Mr Morrison is wearing thin on voters. Picture: NCA NewsWire / David Swift

But Mr Albanese, who has painstakingly waited for his opportunity to contest an election as leader, is at least outwardly optimistic about his chances.

“By the time of the next election, people will, I think, be able to cast a judgment on the current government and whether they‘re worthy of a second decade in office,” he said.

After 20 years on the frontbench, including three months as the nation’s deputy prime minister and another six years in Bill Shorten’s shadow, Mr Albanese finally has his chance.

While he’s staved off rumblings of a leadership challenge during his time as opposition leader, it’s unclear whether he could survive Labor’s fourth election defeat in a row.

Mr Albanese wanted to succeed Kevin Rudd in 2013 but was beaten out by Bill Shorten. Picture: NCA NewsWire/Gary Ramage

For Mr Albanese to become the next prime minister in his own right, Labor needs to pick up eight seats across the country.

It’s part of the reason why he only took four days off ahead of Christmas – which he spent volunteering for the Bill Crews Exodus Foundation in Sydney.

“It can be a difficult day and what Bill Crews, as he does every day, is just to me in the true Christian spirit,” Mr Albanese said.

Both the Opposition Leader and the Prime Minister have launched a pre-election campaign blitz. So far, Mr Albanese has been making his pitch to voters in Adelaide, the Central Coast and the Hunter Region.

“Scott Morrison decided last month to give up on governing and start campaigning,” he told NCA NewsWire.

Mr Albanese has staved off rumblings of leadership challenges but it’s not clear he could survive if Labor were to suffer another election defeat. Picture Kym Smith

“I welcome it because it’s a chance for us to sell our alternative vision for the country.”

Mr Morrison is always quick to remind his team the government only ever has a narrow path to another election victory.

But asked about what his own path looked like, Mr Albanese hinted at tapping into the frustrations Australians have over the governmebnt’s perceived pandemic failures and lack of vision.

“I think the pandemic has shown the strength of Australian society, people making sacrifices to look after each other,” he said.

“But it also showed the weaknesses and vulnerabilities in our economy. And we want to address that.

“I think Australians want an optimistic government that plans and then helps them to create a better future rather than just existing for the holding power for its own sake.”