Federal election 2022: Who won week two of the campaign?

Anthony Albanese and Scott Morrison during week two of the 2022 election campaign. Picture: Jason Edwards/Toby Zerma

Every Friday during the 2022 federal election campaign, Chris Kenny and Troy Bramston will hand down their verdict on the week that was. Here’s how our commentators saw the second week on the hustings, as Anthony Albanese’s Covid diagnosis brings an election wildcard.

Kenny: Albanese staunches bleeding but still lags PM

Chris Kenny.

Anthony Albanese will be sitting back today wondering what the next seven days will bring and trying to convince himself that he won the week. Truth is, he staunched his bleeding, but the campaign debate continues to favour Scott Morrison’s issues, and Albanese’s impending week of isolation is an election wildcard.

Will a week at home with Covid-19 help the Opposition Leader break his run of mistakes, allow him to win sympathy for persevering through adversity, or see him surrender a campaigning advantage to a peripatetic Prime Minister? One thing Albanese cannot do is complain – many of us have been through this isolation annoyance, Morrison more than most, and worked effectively from home.

My instinct is that it will work well for Albanese. It will draw attention to him, and if he is wise he will use the opportunity to engage with the electorate more broadly and intimately, perhaps pop on television shows like mine, and drop in, virtually, on a range of meetings and events around the country.

Anthony Albanese takes a selfie with Labor candidate for the seat of Bennelong, Jerome Laxale and local constituents. Picture: Toby Zerna

This presumes he does not get very crook – on the experience of most of us around his age, he can expect to feel a bit fluey for about 48 hours – but it can vary greatly. If his health holds up, seven days at home in a 42 day campaign could be more of a blessing (if we are still allowed to use that word) than a curse.

Morrison’s reaction will be just as tricky. He should offer to do a virtual debate, confining himself to a similar remote engagement to level the playing field – perhaps he should cook up some curries and send them to Marrickville.

In the end this is all relatively superficial, and as you know, I think elections turn primarily on the fundamentals. Which is why this week, while better for Albanese (how could it not be?) was still good for Morrison.

Albanese, incredibly, started the week with another error on border policy, not knowing his own position on temporary protection visas. Then in the leader’s debate he mangled the same issue again.

While the ABC and others downplayed or ignored these stumbles, the continuing incompetence on a core issue was disturbing, and the prospect of border chaos would chill the marrow of the most flint-hearted souls and the bleeding-hearts. Labor and its media supporters

sought the distraction of another largely concocted personal attack on Morrison, this time over less than perfect phrasing to a mother about her autistic son.

It is hard to see any of this Twitter-style politicking swaying votes – Labor seems to have been led astray by social media memes and vitriol. At some stage you need to treat voters as more than Twitter handles and assume some level of cephalisation.

Despite a superficial campaign without big ideas, real dilemmas have a habit of inserting themselves. The Solomon Islands deal with Beijing is a case in point.

The China debate is tricky but is another strongpoint for the Coalition. Two questions frame the week well for Morrison; can Labor be trusted on boats, or on standing up to China?

Bramston: Albanese’s Covid gives Morrison another win

Troy Bramston.

I thought this week would end up as a draw between the Coalition and Labor — much like the leaders’ debate — but Anthony Albanese being struck down with Covid has given Scott Morrison another win.

Albanese testing positive for Covid-19 on Thursday night will cause major disruption to Labor’s campaign. The most important thing, though, is that it is a mild infection and he quickly recovers. But this is bad luck his campaign can ill-afford.

It has been reported there were strict protocols around the Labor leader to avoid him getting Covid but I spent more than an hour with him recently and was not asked to take a RAT or wear a mask and nobody checked my vaccination status. (I have already had Covid.) Albanese can be interviewed from home but what if he gets really sick? This is the great unknown of the campaign.

The parallels with the 1922 election a century ago are uncanny. I recently wrote about how an unpopular conservative government, following a pandemic, managed to remain in power with crossbench support provided they ditched the PM — Billy Hughes.

Anthony Albanese and Scott Morrison ScottMorrison shake hands before the first leaders' debate. Picture: Getty Images.

It gets even more bizarre. Labor leader Matthew Charlton had moved his party back towards the centre ground of politics and was expected to win the election. But he got sick during the campaign and was hospitalised. Labor only won a few seats — not enough to form government.

The debate was the other big event of the week. Albanese went into the contest having steadied his campaign and improved his presentation at press conferences — and was gaffe free for several days. He impressed during the debate.

But Albanese stumbled on asylum-seeker boat turnbacks by acknowledging he did not support them when he was deputy PM. But I thought Albanese’s opening and closing statements were not persuasive in making the case for change. Labor still struggles to define and animate its agenda with a clear message.

Morrison also performed well but used clumsy and insensitive language when he said he was “blessed” not to have had to go through the experiences of families who have children with a disability. Albanese also scored a direct hit on Morrison over the China-Solomon Islands security agreement when he labelled it a “Pacific stuff-up”.

The Solomon Islands is a disaster for Australia and it happened on Morrison’s watch. Marise Payne has guaranteed her place at the top of the worst foreign ministers league table. But it could make voters more fearful and the Coalition’s hardline approach to China could be seen as a vote winner.

The middle fortnight of the campaign is approaching. This is often a grind for campaign teams. Some voters will be losing interest. So keeping the campaign interesting becomes a priority. At least Albanese will have plenty of time to read his briefs.

Verdict: who won week one of the campaign?