Anthony Albanese‘s personal approval rating has surged just ten days out from federal election, according to the results of an exclusive Ipsos poll commissioned by Daily Mail Australia.
It comes as voters reveal they are concerned about the major parties cutting deals with the Greens on the left and One Nation on the right during the battle to form government.
The survey, of almost 2000 Australians, reveals that the Prime Minister has enjoyed a bump in approval of three percentage points over the past week with 38 per cent of Australians backing him.
This leaves him with a net approval rating of just minus one – the most positive result for preferred Prime Minister that Ipsos has observed since Malcolm Turnbull in 2016.
Meanwhile, things are seemingly going from bad to worse for Peter Dutton who continues to poll as the most unpopular Opposition Leader this century, with a dissatisfaction score of minus 20.
But Jessica Elgood, Ipsos public affairs director, said it was not a question of Mr Albanese being a standout candidate, but rather ‘a question of who’s losing it faster’.
‘This data does not tell us that the electorate think Albo is fantastic, that he’s inspirational, charismatic – it doesn’t,’ Ms Elgood said.
‘They think he’s okay – and they think he’s better than the other guy.’
Perhaps most intriguingly, Australians have expressed fears about the prospect of a minority government for whichever major party holds the balance of power.
The survey, carried out by Ipsos, reveals that Prime Minister Anthony Albanese (pictured with his fiancee, Jodie) has enjoyed a bump in approval of three percentage points over the past week with 38 per cent of Australians backing him
This leaves him with a net approval rating of just minus one – the most positive result for preferred Prime Minister Ipsos has observed since Malcolm Turnbull in 2016.
For example, 52 per cent of voters are concerned about Labor cutting a deal with the Greens – something that Mr Albanese has repeatedly insisted he wouldn’t do.
Older voters are much more concerned about the prospect of Mr Albanese being held to ransom by Greens leader Adam Bandt, with 65 per cent of those aged 55 and over concerned about the issue.
Asked directly by Channel Nine’s Ally Langdon during the third leaders’ debate on Tuesday night about whether Labor would do a deal with the Greens, Mr Albanese said, flatly: ‘No’.
But Opposition Leader Peter Dutton immediately accused him of lying.
‘That’s not a truthful answer from the Prime Minister,’ Mr Dutton said.
‘The Labor Party will fall over themselves to do a deal with the Greens.’
The Opposition Leader said he would not countenance negotiating with the Greens but said he would be open to doing deals with independents.
That might not play well with the public either – given 47 per cent are concerned about the Coalition relying on the Teals, according to the Daily Mail Australia Ipsos survey.
Meanwhile, things are going from bad to worse for Peter Dutton (pictured with his wife, Kirilly and son, Harry) who continues to poll as the most unpopular Opposition Leader this century, with a dissatisfaction score of minus 20
The Opposition Leader said he would not countenance negotiating with the Greens but said he would be open to doing deals with independents. That might not play well with the public given 47 per cent are concerned about the Coalition relying on the Teals (pictured: Greens leader Adam Bandt)
Some 52 per cent of voters are concerned about Labor cutting a deal with the Greens to form a minority government – something that Mr Albanese has repeatedly insisted he wouldn’t do, despite the possible parliamentary math
A slightly smaller number – 45 per cent – are worried about Labor doing a similar deal with independents MPs.
Meanwhile, 51 per cent are worried about the Liberal National Coalition making a deal with Pauline Hanson’s One Nation.
Despite both sitting on the right wing of politics, One Nation and the Liberal National Coalition have a longstanding enmity.
Former Prime Minister John Howard, the man who originally disendorsed Ms Hanson as Liberal candidate in 1996, encouraged voters to place One Nation last on their list of preferences in 2001.
And as recently as 2017, Mr Dutton himself suggested Senator Hanson’s One Nation party was heading for a ‘crash landing’.
But now the two rival parties have broken a 30-year stand-off to encourage voters to preference one another in the majority of lower house seats.
It is to head off the threat posed by Clive Palmer’s Trumpet of Patriots in tightly-contested conservative seats.
‘If it means saving Peter Dutton by shifting a “how to vote”, then we will do so,’ One Nation chief of staff James Ashby told News Corp.
Almost two-thirds of younger voters, those aged 18 to 34, are concerned about the Coalition cutting a deal with One Nation.
‘It again makes that point that that elections are won in the centre ground,’ pollster Ms Elgood added.
‘So the Greens are seen by some as being a little bit too far left, while One Nation is seen as being a little bit too disruptive or aren’t so keen on Pauline Hanson and the sort of characters involved over there.
‘Again, they’re looking for something more moderate, so funnily enough, we’re not so scared about the idea of a major party talking to a teal independent.’
Meanwhile, 51 per cent are worried about the Liberal National Coalition making a deal with Pauline Hanson’s One Nation (pictured)
When it comes to the housing policies of the three main major parties, opinion is split (pictured). Labor’s policy is on the left in green, the Coalition’s is purple, the Greens’ is blue
When it comes to the housing policies of the three main major parties, opinion is split.
A quarter prefer the Liberal policy of giving homebuyers access to $50,000 of their super and tax deductible mortgage payments for first-time buyers.
Meanwhile, just 23 per cent prefer the Labor policy of a five per cent deposit and a a $10 billion fund to build 100,000 homes for first home buyers.
Elsewhere, 22 per cent back the Greens’ policy of reforming negative gearing and ending capital gains tax discounts for investment properties.
Almost one in five find none of the major party positions on housing appealing.
Ms Elgood said that while the results showed each party had housing policies showing a ‘broad spread of appeal…none of the parties are nailing a policy that really lands the housing affordability point’.
Ms Elgood said the Opposition Leader needed to ‘reach out to the centre’.
‘Australian elections are won in the centre ground,’ she said.
The pollster said that Mr Dutton’s fudge on climate change in the second leaders’ debate, where he said he was ‘not a scientist’, would have hurt him in the centre ground.
‘We also had the incidents with Jacinta Price making her “Make Australia Great Again” comment, which I think is mostly unhelpful,’ she added.
‘While there are some voters who are interested in the Trump agenda so it could help Liberal vote but I don’t think it’s going to pull in the numbers that he needs.
Jacinta Nampijinpa Price (pictured) made a major gaffe when she said the Coalition was going to ‘Make Australia Great Again’. Mr Dutton walked the comments back immediately
‘I also think if you’re interested in the Trump agenda, you’ve got some other options on the table in terms of One Nation.’
She said the association with Trump’s tariffs could also spell trouble for Mr Dutton.
‘If voters are feeling worried about cost of living, they’re worried about the global markets and the financial downturn, then I think there’s a tendency to go, “well, let’s not rock the boat, let’s stay where we are”.
“‘Albanese, we might not love him but actually, he’s feeling like a safer option at the moment”.’
Almost half of Australians – 46 per cent – back Mr Albanese as their preferred Prime Minister, while just 32 per cent support Mr Dutton.
Mr Albanese’s lead as preferred Prime Minister is stronger among women (+21); Australians aged 18-34 (+30) and 35-54 (+23); and Daily Mail readers (+25).
Regardless of who they support, 48 per cent of Australians believe Labor will win, a result that is broadly similar to results before Labor won in 2022.
And, in a depressing figure of Mr Dutton, 28 per cent of Coalition voters believe Labor will win – up two percentage points since last week.
But Ms Elgood made the point that Labor’s vote was ‘softer’, meaning that those who said they would back Mr Albanese were not as nailed on as some of the more rusted-on Liberal voters.
‘Could Dutton still win this? I think it’s unlikely, but it is not impossible,’ she said.
‘It would take a significant mistake by Labor, and it would take a really stellar performance by Dutton, and the past month or so does not suggest he’s got it in him.’