Australian election reflects concern over US role in the world

Donald Trump is fortifying support for left-wing governments and undermining conservative parties, with the Australian election result pointing to growing concern over America’s role in the world.

The decisive victory for Labor is also a reflection of growing concerns about the role of America in global politics. Artwork: Frank Ling

You can now listen to The Australian's articles. Give us your feedback.

You can now listen to The Australian's articles.

Antipathy to Donald Trump and his new regime in Washington were key factors in the Australian election, working to the advantage of Anthony Albanese and the detriment of Peter Dutton.

Australia and Canada have emerged as early test cases of how Trump’s political revolution in Washington is influencing elections abroad. The trend shows that a Trump backlash is fortifying international support for left-wing governments while eviscerating the standing of conservative parties.

In Canada, this Trump backlash has been more profound than in Australia, with the nation facing a genuine attack on its sovereignty and an economic emergency brought about by the new US tariffs.

While Australia is a vastly different case, it still found itself rocked by a new unreliability on the part of its most important strategic ally. The decisive victory for Labor is also a reflection of growing concerns about the role of America in the world.

Charles Edel, the Australia chair and senior adviser at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, said the election result captured the “growing scepticism in Australia about the direction of the United States”.

“Australia and the United States have a deep and historic alliance, and that is unlikely to change,” he said. “There’s a robust policy agenda for the two countries on everything from AUKUS to force posture to critical mineral co-ordination.”

“Nevertheless, the election indicates not only a growing scepticism in Australia about the direction of the United States, but also that there will be some bilateral policy challenges, both on Australia’s relatively low levels of defence funding and on Canberra’s narrative about its stabilisation of its ties with Beijing.”

Dr Edel suggested the heightened political authority for Anthony Albanese after the election result could lead to a greater Australian confidence in resisting the new world view in Washington.

“To any pressure that Albanese might feel from Washington, there will also undoubtedly be a sense from Labor that he is politically secure and that his policy instincts are correct,” Dr Edel said.

The Trumpian revolution in Washington has helped to wrong-foot conservative parties across the world in two main ways.

First, it has deepened the conservative crisis gripping centre-right political parties. Conservative movements have been caught between embracing aspects of the Trumpian policy agenda while resisting others.

This was the case in Australia for Peter Dutton’s Liberal Party just as it was for Pierre Poilievre’s Conservative Party in Canada. Both men ended up losing their respective elections as well as their own seats.

Dr Edel said that Mr Dutton and the Liberals “faced voter scrutiny over their perceived similarities to Trump – especially on cultural issues and with policies such as suggestions of a DOGE-like approach to the public sector”.

“There were enough similarities to the Canadian election to suggest that the conservative Liberal Party’s fortunes fell as Trump’s tariffs and attacks on America’s allies ramped up,” he said.

Second, the Trumpian revolution has pushed voters concerned about Trump and his unpredictable suite of policies into the arms of centre-left parties, which are not as divided in their response to many of the radical changes being prosecuted in Washington.

Yet the second coming of Donald Trump should not be seen as the principal cause of the Liberal wipe-out.

It was a factor, but the Labor landslide was mainly assisted by a disastrous Liberal campaign that failed to conduct serious policy work over the previous three years or present a viable alternative vision to the Australian people.