Australian Prime Minister Becomes First to Win Consecutive Terms in Two Decades

What Happened?

Australian Prime Minister, Anthony Albanese, was re-elected this weekend, becoming the first Prime Minister in Australian to win consecutive terms in two decades. Mr. Albanese told reporters shortly after winning re-election, ‘Our government will choose the Australian way, we do not need to copy from anywhere else.’

Australia’s conservatives, who lost the election, ran on a platform of promising to ‘Make Australia Great Again’ and to create a ministry of government efficiency, which are similar to the slogan and efforts of the Trump Administration. 

Why it Matters

The re-election of Anthony Albanese is surprising because his poll numbers were at record lows as recently as January. Australian conservative leader, Peter Dutton, said ‘We have been defined by our opponents in this election, which is not the true story of who we are.’

Yet several of Australia’s conservatives did try to present themselves as Trump-like during the campaign, an effort that voters soundly rejected this weekend. The new tariffs by the Trump Administration include a ten percent tax on goods from Australia, which likely helped sour voters on the current U.S. President. 

Australia is a key U.S. ally in the south Pacific, providing critical bases from which to project power against China. Yet an astonishing three-quarters of voters polled just before this weekend’s elections in Australia said they thought the Trump Administration could not be trusted with Australia’s security. 

The loss of conservatives in Australia follows similar results in Canada last week. Where a liberal prime minister who few had given much chances of winning, made a remarkable comeback. In large part by styling himself as the national leader of the opposition to the policies of the Trump Administration.

Analyzing the effect of the Trump-faction, ‘It was devastating in Canada for the conservatives ... I think it has been a factor here, just how big a factor will be determined in a few hours' time,’ Senator James Paterson told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Pre-election polls among Australian voters ranked the cost of living as the number one issue in the election, which can explain the anti-Trump sentiment as a reaction to the tariffs imposed by the Trump Administration. 

Whether or not Mr. Albanese and his center-left party will win a majority overall remains to be seen, but the data reported so far is trending in that direction. 

How it Affects You

America’s reputation among allies like Australia has taken a hit during the Trump Administration, mostly due to the impact of tariffs. Despite the change in public opinion, reflected by the election results, the U.S. Australian alliance will likely continue, as Australian shares the U.S. desire to limit the expansion of China’s power in the Pacific region.