Australian news and politics recap May 2: Peter Dutton and Anthony Albanese make final pitches to voters

The Opposition Leader has pulled out a copy of a front page the Prime Minister would probably rather forget from the lead-up to the last election.

“You’d remember this headline because this was the Prime Minister’s main pitch going into the last election. ‘Life will be cheaper under me’ he said.

“I haven’t found one Australian who can say they’re paying less for their power. The Prime Minister promised it wound be down by $275. It’s up by $1300.

“He promised their mortgages would be cheaper. But people are paying now higher interest rates because interest rates have gone up 12 times under the Prime Minister’s watch. People are paying 35% more for their insurance. And there is a better way.”

“I know the Prime Minister doesn’t want to talk about the last three years. But the fact is that families are under the pump.

“Not just families, but small businesses too. All of that is because of bad economic management in a high inflationary environment.

“Australians over the last couple of years have gone backwards - an average family is $50,000 worse off under this Government, and for most Australians, people know that we have lived in the biggest dip to our living standards in our country’s history.”

The Opposition Leader is speaking in WA about his vision for the future.

“I want to make sure that we have a country where people can afford the retire, where people can afford the retire in dignity and with the respect that they deserve after a lifetime of hard time work.

“I want to make sure when younger people are working hard, understand there’s a future for them and I want the economy to work for them. I want the economy to work for them as opposed to the other way around.

“And a Liberal Government will always manage the economy more effectively than Labor.”

Anthony Albanese has sat down at Banjos Bakery in Rooke Street Mall in Devonport for a few sips of coffee with Anne Urquhart and some of her volunteers.

It transpired that it was the 70th birthday for one of them, Syed Mahsein, who was thrilled to meet the prime minister and his deputy, Richard Marles.

“Anthony travels around and visits everybody on their 70th birthday,” the PM’s partner Jodie Haydon joked.

“All part of the service!” Mr Albanese chimed in.

They then walked down to the other end of the mall, trailed by Labor and Liberal volunteers holding up campaign posters.

One man clad in a blue Liberal Party T-shirt shouted: “$450 million on the Voice, what a waste of money! Where’s my money?”

The PM’s staff told him to chill out and he stopped the protest.

For the last few hours, Anthony Albanese and Peter Dutton have spent a fair chunk of time in the air.

Mr Dutton, who started the day in Adelaide, is now in Perth, WA.

Mr Albanese, who started the day in Brisbane, is now in Devonport, Tasmania.

“It won’t surprise Australians that I’ll be voting Labor on Saturday,” Jodie Haydon, Mr Albanese’s fiancée, wrote.

“As the daughter of public school teachers, I could not be more delighted that Anthony and the government will fully fund public education – completing the important reforms begun by Julia Gillard, who was an important trailblazer in public life and a woman I very much admire.

“Australians can trust Anthony to manage the economy well and invest in the services families rely on, like Medicare. He has focused on helping Australians with cost-of-living pressure in the here and now, while building opportunity for the future.

“There can be a lot of noise in politics. But I’m confident women can spot a prime minister who respects and values them.

“Anthony understands the importance of conditions like flexible work so that families can balance their work demands and see their kids, families and friends.

“Anthony wants women to fulfil their dreams and aspirations. He walks the walk on equality in his professional life and at home.

“Anthony is tough, and we need our leaders to be tough, because the world is an uncertain place.

Read Jodie Haydon’s full message to Australian voters.

Both Anthony Albanese and Peter Dutton’s partners have penned letters explaining why their significant others should be voted in as Australia’s next Prime Minister.

Although not surprising that both adamantly support their political partners, their letters provide an insight into the men behind the political personas.

Here is

“Above all else, Peter is a listener,” Kirilly Dutton, Mr Dutton’s wife wrote on X.

“Whether he is with family, friends, residents in Dickson, or the many Australians he meets as a parliamentarian, he is attentive and curious.”

“He isn’t one of those politicians who speaks over people or tells people how it is.

“He asks questions. He wants to hear other people’s stories and perspectives. And that’s what makes him attuned to the views and values of everyday Australians. He started and ran a successful business.

“He has always prioritised time with myself and the kids and has endless time for his extended family – especially his nieces and nephews.

“Peter is the prime minister we need for our times.”

Read Kirilly Dutton’s full message to Australian voters.

On Saturday, millions of Australians will head to the voting booth to have their say in the Australian Federal election.

And, while most will be watching the results on election night to see who will be leading the country for the next four years, others might be watching to see if they have had a win on an election result punt.

Election betting odds are often seen as an alternative poll of sorts, predicting who may take out Australia’s top Federal job.

On election eve, the odds were brutally updated, appearing to be more bad news for Opposition Leader Peter Dutton.

Sportsbet and TAB have kept Labor as their favourite to form Government on Saturday night, paying $1.06 and $1.08 respectively. For the Coalition, the odds have dramatically worsened with the bookies in just a few days, with Sportsbet and TAB now paying $10.50 and $8.00 respectively for the win.

In what may come as a welcome development for Labor, if the betting odds are anything to go by, bookies now predict Mr Albanese will form a majority Government, putting the outcome at around $1.50.

Mr Dutton’s Coalition is now at $36 to form a majority.

Read the full breakdown, including who bookies tip couple replace Peter Dutton.

The Nightly’s Ellen Ransley writes: This Saturday’s election is shaping up to produce a mélange of results. All the polls say Labor is almost certain to retain Government, it will just be a matter of whether they cling on to majority, or fall short – and if so, by how much.

Going into the election, Labor holds a notional 78 seats, the Coalition 57, the Greens 4, and the crossbench 11. The major parties need 76 of the 150 seats to form majority Government, but could govern with 75 by making a crossbencher the speaker.

A handful of marginal seats could swap hands, while there are serious challenges to electorates with more sizeable buffers. The teal wave that swept through capital cities in 2022 could extend into the regions this time, while the Greens face tough competition in their three Queensland seats, and One Nation’s vote is up across the country.

Psephologist Kevin Bonham told The Nightly said there were about 50 seats to pay close attention to – including most marginal seats on either side.

“If the polls are right, the median result is Labor slightly increasing its majority. There could reasonably be anything from Labor falls into minority by a few through to something lopsided – anything within that range,” he said.

“For Labor to fall deeply into minority, something would be deeply wrong… But you can’t be absolutely sure until you see what happens.”

Liberal sources know there’s a reality where they only win five or six seats come Saturday but are still hopeful a significant Labor backlash eventuates in the outer urban electorates.

Read the full story and see which seats near you are key.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has made a final impassioned plea to voters to choose “hope versus fear” on the eve of Australia’s Federal election.

Mr Albanese on Friday started his election eve campaign dash as began – at a Medicare urgent care clinic in Brisbane, spruiking Labor’s central campaign pledges on cost-of-living relief and more accessible healthcare.

In an early morning press conference expected to be his last before polling D-Day on Saturday, Mr Albanese turned on his opponents as being unfit for power.

“They are just not ready for government. Australia deserves better, and I’ll give them better,” he said in a fierce salvo that will likely be returned by Opposition Leader Peter Dutton later on Friday.

The Prime Minister accused Mr Dutton of treating Australians with contempt by “not coming up with any alternative policies” and “giving budget replies without any costings.”

“They have not gone through a single week of this campaign where they have not flipped and flopped,” charged Mr Albanese, referring to Mr Dutton’s earlier statement he would move into Sydney’s Kirribilli House rather than Canberra if elected as a “very significant moment.”

Read the full story.