Coalition bounces back as voters desert Labor
A two-point rise in the primary vote has given the Coalition a two-party-preferred lead as Labor sinks to historical lows.
The Coalition has rebounded from a fall in popular support at the height of Scott Morrison’s border wars with the Labor state premiers last month, as Labor leader Anthony Albanese’s approval ratings tumble into negative territory for the first time.
An exclusive Newspoll conducted for The Australian shows a two-point rise in the Coalition’s primary vote to 43 per cent and a corresponding fall for Labor, which has returned to near-historical lows of 34 per cent.
The swing back to the government has seen it regain its two-party-preferred advantage over Labor (51 to 49), which had drawn level in the previous poll of three weeks ago.
The lift for the government follows the release of the Prime Minister’s energy policy last week that set out a roadmap for a gas-led economic recovery and an agreement by the states to lift the cap on returning up to 24,000 Australians from overseas before Christmas.
Mr Morrison has also recovered from a sizeable drop in approval ratings three weeks ago during the heated clash with Victoria and Queensland over the stalled recovery and the strict social lockdowns and border closures.
Satisfaction with Mr Morrison’s performance rose a point to 65 per cent while those dissatisfied with the Liberal leader fell a point to 31 per cent.
The improvement maintains Mr Morrison’s long-running popularity since the pandemic but is still short of the record highs in support in June and July when he reached 68 per cent approval.
The story was not so positive for the Opposition Leader, who was sidelined during last week’s energy debates that renewed deep divisions within the Labor caucus.
For the first time this year, the Labor leader’s net approval ratings went negative, with a four-point fall to 39 per cent in satisfaction levels compared with 40 per cent dissatisfied.
Mr Morrison has also recovered ground as the preferred prime minister after a significant cut to his margin in the last poll.
The number of people backing Mr Morrison as the better PM rose a point to 59 per cent while those supporting Mr Albanese fell two points to 27 per cent.
A total of 14 per cent of voters were undecided.
At a primary vote of 43 per cent, the Coalition remains ahead of its election result.
Labor’s primary vote of 34 per cent is marginally better than its 33.3 per cent election result, which marked a low point in the party’s history.
The latest poll shows Labor losing votes to both the Coalition and the Greens, which lifted its support a point to 12 per cent compared with its 10.4 per cent election result.
Pauline Hanson’s One Nation party remained steady at 3 per cent, marking little change since the 2019 poll.
There was a 1 per cent markdown in voter support for other minor parties and independents.
The two-party-preferred vote of 51-49 reflects the position the government was in during June as Victoria descended into its second wave COVID-19 outbreak.
Its greatest lead over Labor was in mid-July when the margin stretched to 53-47.
The poll was conducted between September 16 and 19, with a sample size of 2068 surveys conducted on line across capital cities and the regions.
More Coverage
Clark, the thief who stole hopes of a people
Geoff Clark’s criminal downfall has prompted an outpouring of regret and anger from Aboriginal leaders and policy makers, who see him as the symbol of dysfunction in Indigenous affairs.
CTE at age just 20: tragic rookie’s diagnosis that changes the game
NRL rookie Keith Titmuss was suffering brain disease Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy when he died at 20 — the youngest Australian sport player to be diagnosed with the head-knock-related condition.