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Steady Support for Australia’s ALP

May 29, 2007

(Angus Reid Global Monitor) - Many Australians will vote for the opposition Australian Labor Party (ALP) in this year's election, according to a poll by Roy Morgan International. 51 per cent of respondents would support the ALP, while 35.5 per cent would back the governing Coalition of Liberals and Nationals.

The Australian Greens are third with eight per cent, followed by Family First, the Australian Democrats, and One Nation. Australia's preferential voting system—where electors indicate an order of predilection for each contender, and the ballots from smaller parties are re-distributed—gives the ALP a 21-point lead over the Coalition.

In the October 2004 election, prime minister John Howard was rewarded with a fourth term in office, as the Coalition secured 87 seats in the House of Representatives. The ALP—led by Mark Latham—elected 60 lawmakers. In December 2006, foreign affairs spokesman Kevin Rudd became the new leader of the ALP, defeating Kim Beazley in an internal caucus ballot.

On May 26, ALP health spokeswoman Nicola Roxon discussed the party's plan to help Aboriginal communities, saying, "I do think that starting with the children that are being born today, providing complementary health services, family support and education services is a great place to start. (...) We also know for example that an indigenous baby born today is 3.5 times more likely to die before they turn one than a non-indigenous baby."

Polling Data

What party would you vote for in the next election to the House of Representatives?

May 20

May 13

May 6

Australian Labor Party

51%

51%

51.5%

Coalition (Liberal / National)

35.5%

36%

35.5%

Australian Greens

8%

8%

7%

Family First

1.5%

1.5%

1.5%

Australian Democrats

1%

1%

1%

One Nation

1%

0.5%

0.5%

Two-Party Preferred Vote

May 20

May 13

May 6

Australian Labor Party

60.5%

59.5%

60%

Coalition (Liberal / National)

39.5%

40.5%

40%

Source: Roy Morgan International
Methodology: Face-to-face interviews with 899 Australian voters, conducted on May 19 and May 20, 2007. No margin of error was provided.