(06/22/04) -

Labor Would Form Australian Government

(CPOD) Jun. 22, 2004 – The opposition Australian Labor Party (ALP) is the top political organization in Australia, according to a poll by ACNielsen published in the Sydney Morning Herald.

(CPOD) Jun. 22, 2004 – The opposition Australian Labor Party (ALP) is the top political organization in Australia, according to a poll by ACNielsen published in the Sydney Morning Herald.

Australia’s preferential voting system—where electors indicate an order of predilection for each contender, and the ballots from smaller parties are re-distributed—would allow the ALP to form a government, with 52 per cent, while 48 per cent of respondents would choose the ruling coalition of Liberals and Nationals.

Mark Latham became the new ALP leader in December 2003. Prime minister John Howard is expected to call a federal vote before October 2004, and is counting on his economic record to remain in government. The country’s current unemployment rate is 5.6 per cent, a 14-year low.

Peter Garrett—the former lead singer in rock group Midnight Oil, who has been active in environmentalist causes, and has acted as president of the Australian Conservation Foundation—has accepted to become the ALP’s nominee in the Kingsford-Smith constituency.

Recently published reports have hinted at a possible early election on Aug. 7. An official announcement is expected in the next two weeks.

Polling Data

If a Federal election for the House of Representatives were being held today, which party would receive your first preference?

Two-Party Preferred Vote