Political

CAMERON MILNER: The real test of Anthony Albanese’s leadership begins after the celebrations fade, with voters expecting answers on housing, cost of living, and a long list of unfinished reforms.

AARON PATRICK: Exiled leaders of the construction union want to take back control of the organisation, which has faced a long history of dubious allegations.

JENI O’DOWD: If history teaches us anything, it’s this: a day is a long time in politics, and with just a few to go, anything can happen. Peter Dutton could even pull off a Paul Keating.

LATIKA M BOURKE: The Opposition Leader’s commitment to defence spending finally addresses a world that has changed under Donald Trump. So why did he wait so long to do it?

Voter loyalty is a thing of the past, and who can blame them?

JENI O’DOWD: Peter Dutton began his campaign so devoid of vision that it made Anthony Albanese’s costly promises look appealing. Now that’s changed, but he still has an enormous amount of work to do.

ANDREW CARSWELL: It may be the thinnest of silver linings, but for all the smirks and chest-beating in Camp Albanese, Labor is failing to capitalise on the Coalition’s bleeding primary vote.

CAMERON MILNER: We’re at half-time in this election campaign. The teams are back on the field and the crowd are back in their seats. It’s neck-and-neck and anybody could win from here.

PAUL MURRAY: The Opposition Leader’s backtracking and failure to differentiate his policies enough from those of the Government are hurting the Coalition.

MARK RILEY: Donald Trump's announcement of a pause on tariffs has effectively killed off Anthony Albanese’s strongest defence to the economic tirade.

PAUL MURRAY: Everyone is so consumed with panicking about Donald Trump that we seem to barely notice other pressing problems much closer to home.

THE FRONT DORE: It’s time to fess up. In the three years since he became PM, we’ve been wrong about Anthony Albanese. We’ve been unreasonable. Unkind. Definitely unfair.

JENI O’DOWD: The Albanese Government is doing everything it can to pretend things are under control. But voters aren’t stupid. They know exactly what’s going on — and they aren’t buying it.

ANDREW CARSWELL: If you’ve already locked in your vote for the 2025 Federal election, brace yourself for some bad news. Others will be deciding the final outcome on election night.

KATE EMERY: Happiness is the thing everyone wants, too few of us have and that Australian politicians so rarely mention. Maybe it’s time to change that.