Labor leader Anthony Albanese starts election campaign as clear favourite in Newspoll

Anthony Albanese starts the election campaign as the favourite, according to the latest Newspoll, but there are some worrying signs.

Labor leader Anthony Albanese starts the election campaign as the clear favourite according to the latest Newspoll but there’s some worrying signs for the ALP’s primary vote.

An exclusive Newspoll conducted for The Australian on the eve of the campaign also reveals that the gap between the Liberal Party and the ALP is tightening.

Labor begins the election campaign with a two-party preferred lead of 53:47 which would see the Prime Minister lose 10 seats and government.

In a worrying sign for Anthony Albanese however, the latest Newspoll reveals Labor’s primary vote has now fallen to 37 per cent – a drop of more than 4 points just over a fortnight.

In 2019, former Labor leader Bill Shorten also started the campaign with a primary vote of 39 per cent before recording just 33 per cent on the day of the May 18, 2019 election.

Opposition leader Anthony Albanese in Sydney. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Flavio Brancaleone

The Prime Minister visited the Governor-General on Sunday to dissolve parliament and call the election for May 21 declaring Australians faced “a clear choice.”

“This election is a choice between a government that you know and that has been delivering and a labour opposition that you don’t,’’ he said.

While others would throw stones, Mr Morrison said the election was “not about me.”

“This election, others will seek to make it about me,’’ Mr Morrison said.

“It’s actually about the people who are watching this right now. It’s about what we’ve demonstrated over these past three years.”

“This election is about you.”

Prime Minister Scott Morrison arrives in Nowra and does his first TV interviews. Picture: Jason Edwards

Prime Minister Scott Morrison arrives in Nowra. A woman from a car yells out “we love you Scott”. Picture: Jason Edwards

The Coalition’s primary vote remained unchanged at just 36 per cent according to Newspoll.

The Prime Minister now faces a tough challenge to lift that primary vote to get the Liberal Party into a stronger position as the campaign unfolds.

Support for minor parties and independents is a stunning 27 per cent according to Newspoll.

The Greens remain unchanged on 10 per cent, with One Nation level on 3 per cent and “others” recording 10 per cent.

The Prime Minister has also increased his lead on the question of who is the better prime minister when compared to Anthony Albanese.

Anthony Albanese watches the round five NRL match between the South Sydney Rabbitohs and the St George Illawarra Dragons in Sydney over the weekend. Picture: Mark Metcalfe/Getty Images

Mr Albanese fell three points to 39 per cent while Mr Morrison rose a point to 44 per cent.

Labor leader Anthony Albanese opened his election pitch on Sunday with a brutal sledge about Prime Minister Scott Morrison “going missing” in Hawaii during the bushfires.

Mr Morrison announced today the federal election would be held on May 21 — and both leaders have made their first statements.

Mr Albanese declared that “Australians deserve better” and pledged to restore faith in political life.

“I won’t go missing when the going gets tough,’’ he said.

The Prime Minister infamously jetted out of Australia during the 2019 bushfires before he was busted enjoying a secret family holiday in Hawaii.