Coalition leads Labor on two-party preferred, poll shows

A fresh poll is spelling trouble for Anthony Albanese ahead of next year’s federal election as Australians put the PM on notice.

The Coalition is leading Labor on a two-party preferred basis for the first time since the 2022 general election, according to a fresh poll.

A Newspoll conducted for The Australian released this week revealed the Coalition was ahead 51-49, after months of being neck-and-neck with the Albanese government.

The shifts in support come down to preference flows from minor parties, with a one-point drop in primary support for the Greens and a one-point primary bump for One Nation.

But it comes after Labor’s primary vote fell to 31 per cent, below the 32.6 per cent it held during the last election, fuelling expectations the party will govern in minority following next year’s vote.

Primary support for the Coalition remains at 38 per cent, two points higher than it had at the 2022 election.

The latest Newspoll poll shows that, overall, Anthony Albanese (right) and Peter Dutton (left) are tied for preferred prime minister. Picture: NewsWire / Martin Ollman

Deputy Opposition Leader David Littleproud said on Monday the results were “encouraging”.

“I think Australians are simply asking themselves, do they feel safe and they feel better off after 2½ years of Anthony Albanese?” he told Sky News.

“The answer is, no, they don’t. And so they’re getting angry, and we’re putting up real solutions, energy, taking on the supermarkets and a sensible migration policy that might give people some hope that they might own a home one day, bring in some tradies rather than some dog groomers and martial arts instructors.”

The poll also showed Mr Albanese had overall fallen to equal place with Mr Dutton as preferred prime minister.

Mr Albanese’s approval ratings hit their lowest point since he took the top job, suffering a three point blow to voter satisfaction and three point hike to voter dissatisfaction.

The Albanese government has had a hard time getting its legislative agenda through parliament, with key legislation stalled in the Senate, sparking thinly veiled threats from Mr Albanese to dissolve both houses.

Mr Albanese has also been weathering fallout from the growing conflict in the Middle East that has caused sustained social friction across Australia’s diverse population.