| No images? Click here Quote to note"I hope this isn’t gonna be six weeks of daily 20 Questions quizzes asking politicians for their recall of various facts and figures." The Guardian’s Josh Butler might be giving us a taste of the future of this campaign. More than a few pollies will have been swatting up on the basics overnight to avoid the same fate… Making news this morning1. Labor leader Anthony Albanese’s stats gaffe remains front and centre. It led Australia’s major news bulletins last night, and it has made the front pages of the 2 national newspapers and the major metro dailies. 2. PM Scott Morrison will keep the spotlight on economic management today with a promise his government will support the creation of 1.3 million jobs by 2027. Note: 1.9 million jobs have been created since the Coalition came to office in 2013. 3. For Albanese, it’s onwards with an announcement to restore telehealth psychiatric consultations for people living in rural and regional Australia (PW). 4. Albanese’s claim that Australia’s labour market is increasingly casualised is wrong, according to the Financial Review. It’s taken the Labor leader to task on its front page this morning. 5. Power bills are on the way up, posing another cost of living challenge for financially stretched Aussies. The price of coal has surged thanks to the war in Ukraine and floods on our east coast. Going deeper: Why campaign gotcha moments matterYou would have heard that Labor leader Anthony Albanese didn’t know the unemployment rate (4%) or the Reserve Bank’s official cash rate target (0.1%) when quizzed by journos on day one of the campaign trail. Moments like this tend to dominate the day’s coverage – and if it’s awful, into day 2 – and wipe out the *actual thing* candidates lined up to talk about (in Albanese’s case, better care for kids with hearing loss.) ● Scott Morrison had one of those moments a couple of months back at the National Press Club when he didn’t know the cost of a loaf of bread. He countered that he wasn’t going to pretend in his job that he bought his household’s milk and bread. ● The gotcha daddy of ‘em all was Liberal Leader John Hewson in 1993 when he couldn’t clearly answer whether a birthday cake would be more expensive with his GST, which derailed his campaign. You can check it out in all its glory in our clip of the day. What it means: One of the Coalition’s key campaign lines is that Albanese is inexperienced and unproven when it comes to managing the economy. This misstep will be fodder for the rest of the campaign – and it’s already a Coalition ad. And we talked yesterday about Labor making a virtue of long press conferences. Note: the killer question was the 23rd bowled up to Albanese in yesterday morning’s press conference, and it finished shortly afterwards. What’s next: Whether you consider them gotcha moments or a reasonable line of questioning, these questions are part and parcel of election campaigns. It saw day one on the hustings go to Morrison – but there are 39 days to go. The Independents threatening to shake up the status quoThere are a few possible outcomes for this election, and one of them is that the result is so tight that independents will hold the balance of power. There are already a few in the House of Reps (Andrew Wilkie in Tassie, Helen Haines in Victoria, and Zali Steggall in NSW), but this campaign is notable for a well-organised/well-funded group of independent candidates who are ready to have a go in Liberal seats. ● Through his Climate 200 group, wealthy businessman Simon Holmes à Court is backing 16 ‘teal’ independents running pro-climate, pro-integrity agendas. ● In Victoria, former ABC journo Zoe Daniel is looking to unseat Liberal Tim Wilson in Goldstein, and neurologist Monique Ryan is up against Treasurer Josh Frydenberg in Kooyong. Both launched to big crowds on the weekend. ● And in Sydney, Liberals Dave Sharma and Trent Zimmerman are being challenged by Holmes à Court-backed independents Allegra Spender in Wentworth and Kylea Tink in North Sydney. What it means: The Coalition says these ‘teal’ candidates are actually “shadow Labor candidates”, and they are having to put precious dollars into sandbagging these blue-ribbon seats. What’s next: There’s a lot of hype about their chances, but ABC elections expert Antony Green says the rule of thumb is they need to get at least 30% of the primary vote and 75-80% of the preferences from other candidates to win. And that’s a big ask. Getting in early… The changing way we vote Back in the olden days, the Saturday set down for the election was the day you voted. But the last few elections have shown Aussies have come to like the option of voting early. In 2019, 40% of voters (4.2 million) pre-polled – a significant increase from 2016 (2.7 million). ● You are meant to have a specific reason for voting early, but it’s just about convenience for many Australians. In this election, you can cast a vote from 9 May. ● States that have had elections since the start of the pandemic have seen a big increase in pre/postal voting. In South Australia, pre-poll voting was up 75% on the previous election. What does it mean: Both pre-poll votes and postal votes are counted on election night, but they can slow things down if it’s a tight contest. Note: postal votes come back to the Electoral Commission in envelopes that need to be opened and checked against the electoral roll. What’s next: Given how many voters are casting their vote before polling day, Morrison and Albanese can’t save too many big announcements for the final fortnight. And it’s something for the democracy sausage BBQ organisers to factor in… Quick shotsLabor deputy leader Richard Marles has told senior defence officials he would probably be defence minister in an Albanese Government, the SMH/Age reports. Questions about the makeup of Albanese’s cabinet are said to be causing unrest inside the party. The NSW division of the Liberal Party has recorded a “mass exodus” of members this financial year. Simmering factional tensions are said to be behind many resigning/not renewing their membership. Scott Morrison supports efforts to stop transgender women from competing in women’s sports. Asked yesterday about the Warringah Liberal candidate Katherine Deves’ work in that area, Morrison said he backed her and Labor Senator Claire Chandler’s stance – but it’s for “another time”. Sorta-kinda Cabinet minister Alan Tudge is welcome to rejoin the frontbench after the election, Morrison confirmed yesterday, despite standing aside following abuse claims by ex-lover/staffer Rachelle Miller. She is set to secure a taxpayer-funded payout of more than $500,000, it was revealed yesterday. It’s 2017 all over again with Emmanuel Macron and Marine Le Pen fighting it out for the French presidency. The pair were the top 2 candidates from Sunday’s vote: Macron received 27.6% of the vote compared with Len Pen’s 23.4%. The runoff is on Sunday, 24 April. There’s a new Sharif in town… Pakistan’s opposition leader Shehbaz Sharif has been voted in as the country’s new prime minister this morning. Unionists in Melbourne have vowed to protect The Curtin pub in Carlton from demolition. Situated opposite Trades Hall, their local named for former Labor icon John Curtin has been snaffled by an unknown buyer who could have redevelopment plans. Clip of the day Trigger warning: When you watch this, you’ll want to put your hands over your eyes and slide under your desk… On the 1993 campaign trail, veteran broadcaster Mike Willesee asked Liberal leader Dr John Hewson if a birthday cake would be more expensive with a GST. His tortured response was seen as a turning point in the campaign, and Labor PM Paul Keating went on to win "the sweetest victory of all". As Hewson remarked 25 years later: “Good question, bad answer.” What’s on todayPM Scott Morrison will be in Sydney today Labor leader Anthony Albanese Albanese is staying in Tassie 7.00am – The Australian Computer Society will host a Federal Election Debate on issues outlined in the organisation’s policy platform – Canberra 11.00am – The Australian Council of Social Service will outline its policy priorities ahead of the election. Senators Katy Gallagher is the confirmed Labor rep ABS Data Release – survey on the household impacts of COVID for March, and overseas arrivals and departures for February Vaccinated Australians will be allowed to enter New Zealand without needing to quarantine for COVID from today *All times in AEST unless noted |
