We’re almost halfway through the week but barely a quarter of the way through this election campaign. Welcome to Wednesday, our live politics coverage, and yet another poll to ponder.
The big picture
The prime minister, Malcolm Turnbull, is “arrogant, but people like him”. That’s the headline on this story in the Australian today, after a special Newspoll was taken to ask people about character traits they believe the leaders exhibit.
Of the 1,709 people surveyed, six out of 10 said Turnbull was arrogant, an increase from 55%. However, the former Labor leader Kevin Rudd and former prime minister Tony Abbott were considered far more arrogant in similar, previous polls. Just under half of those surveyed said the opposition leader, Bill Shorten, was arrogant, with his measure falling from 49% to 47%.
But the Australian’s story also says:
Voters considered Mr Turnbull far more likeable, even though his standing fell three points to 68% and Mr Shorten rose nine points to 57%.
While both men are former ministers leading their parties for the first time in an election campaign, Mr Turnbull was judged to be a more experienced leader at 74%, down three points. Mr Shorten’s score rose five points to 62%.
In recent months, voter satisfaction with Mr Turnbull ha declined while it has risen for Mr Shorten. This week’s Newspoll showed both leaders had a net satisfaction rating of minus 12 points, the first time they have been tied.
Mr Turnbull remains the preferred prime minister by 46% to Mr Shorten on 31%, but the lead over his Labor rival has been more than halved since mid-November, when 64% of people favoured him in the top job. Mr Shorten has more than doubled his standing since he fell to the equal record low for a Labor leader in December of 14 points.”
Sixty-one per cent of respondents said Shorten, who has been campaigning on health and Medicare, understood the major issues, a seven-point increase, while Turnbull was judged by 63% to understand the major issues, down one point, with his focus on “jobs and growth”.
Meanwhile, the deputy prime minister, Barnaby Joyce, is expected to announce a support package for dairy farmers affected by milk price cuts. He’s expected to head to the electorate of New England in NSW to give details of the relief package today.
On the campaign trail
Bill Shorten and Malcolm Turnbull will both be in Melbourne today.
And the Nationals leader, Barnaby Joyce, the Greens leader, Richard Di Natale, and Labor’s agriculture spokesman, Joel Fitzgibbon, will take part in a debate focussed on regional issues tonight.
The campaign you should be watching
Page, NSW. According to Antony Green’s election blog, the electorate on the far north coast includes Lismore, Kyogle, the Richmond river and Clarence river and is currently held by the Nationals. It has only ever been held by the ALP or the Nationals.
But 18-year-old Greens candidate, Kudra Falla-Ricketts, hopes to shake things up a bit in the electorate by capitalising on her local popularity and the strong anti-CSG sentiment in the community, writes Amanda King:
The chances of her being elected are remote – the Greens won only 6% of first-preference votes in 2013, well behind the Nationals’ Kevin Hogan, who narrowly beat the incumbent, Labor’s Janelle Saffin. Both are standing again.
The Greens hope to make some inroads. At the 2015 New South Wales state elections of 2015, the Greens came a close second to the Nationals in Lismore, which is part of the Page federal electoral district.
And another thing(s)
There’s been a lot of comment about Nova Peris and her announcement yesterday that she will be leaving the Senate after one term. Michelle Grattan writes for The Conversation that her decision is “very awkward” for Labor.
Especially because of the timing, apparent lack of warning, and confusion surrounding it when opposition leader Bill Shorten initially could not reach her to clarify the situation.
Shorten told a news conference Peris had been a “trailblazer” both on the athletics track and in the Senate.
Peris said that as a “champion of change I will continue to fight racism and prejudice”. She noted that Labor had six Indigenous candidates contesting the election.
Labor now has to move quickly to get a replacement candidate for the NT Senate spot.
Meanwhile the Australian says that Peris had approached senior AFL executives about the position as the organisation’s head of diversity.
However, the Australian understands she is not the presumptive candidate for the hotly contested role, which is expected to be filled within weeks.
The never ending dog-stoush
“He looks inbred with a tomato”. This is the comment made by actor Johnny Depp on the US talkshow Jimmy Kimmel Live when asked about the deputy prime minister, Barnaby Joyce.
Johnny Depp on Barnaby Joyce: ‘He looks inbred with a tomato’ https://t.co/KDjW4xzFGI
— Kieran Gilbert (@Kieran_Gilbert) May 24, 2016
