While Saturday’s election result was an outstanding win for Albanese and Labor, it was also a clear and powerful message from Australians to our polity: Australians want the Far-Right-crazy dialled down, not up.
The resounding victory for Labor was as intricately connected with world events as it was with the Opposition Leader’s attempt to exploit them and the message that reverberated from the voting booths was all encompassing:
This is not who we are!
While the 2023 Voice Referendum result confounded progressives and left many of us feeling as though the fabric of our society was broken, this election result was a recalibration of Australia’s values.
In some ways, perhaps Labor has Donald Trump to thank for that, but certainly, it has the Coalition to thank. And, unlike the legacy media, we’re not only talking about the Coalition’s election campaign.
Certainly, the Dutton-led campaign was a train wreck and generally unfathomable, but a five-week election campaign was not the reason the Liberals have been all but wiped out in a great wave even surfer Mick Fanning couldn’t conquer.
Most of all, Labor has the Coalition to thank because of what the Tories have become: a Far-Right monolith reminiscent of a bygone era.
This slow and steady lurch further to the Right, which has completely removed any hint of “broad church” ideology from the Liberal Party, arguably began with John Howard, seized upon and massaged by Tony Abbott, slightly challenged but basically maintained by Malcolm Turnbull, built upon and solidified by Scott Morrison and finally, put on a course of steroids under Peter Dutton.
As our allies and most of the world recoiled against Trump’s despotic lunacy, Dutton praised him. Even as the reality of Trump’s divisive policies began to hit home for Australia, Dutton embraced and emulated his role model’s playbook.
Though a lacklustre talent pool has plagued the Liberal Party for many years (probably since John Hewson), Dutton was hardly the brightest star on which to hitch their wagon, but still, the Liberals persisted.
We’re not Right enough, they declared. Go further, further Right! Not hateful enough, blame louder! Not divisive enough, attack harder!
And, Dutton, happy to comply, ecstatic that his Trumpian approach was finally being appreciated, took the Liberal Party as far to the Right as possible without actually joining Pauline Hanson's One Nation (PHON) — though, of course, the Liberal Party did preference PHON, a deal over which both sides would no doubt now like a refund.
Sure, in the final throes of the campaign, Dutton and co began to wind back the Trumpian rhetoric, but it was already too late. Temu Trump had shown us who he was. The Liberal Party showed us what it was. And Australians did not want a bar of it.
This is not only because Trump is on the nose in Australia. And it’s not only because Dutton’s election campaign was abysmal. It is because Trump’s values, which clearly resonated with the sector of American society who voted him back in and were openly emulated by Dutton's Coalition, are as far removed from Australian values today as the Nazi Regime our ancestors fought against last century.
As unease grows around the world in response to the Trump Administration's unpredictable and terrifying approach to trade and defence, and its bullying and divisive practices become more unhinged, Australians are no longer looking to the United States for answers — they want no part of the madness.
And in order to be completely sure we didn't end up with Peter "Temu Trump" Dutton, voters abandoned the Tories in their droves.
Today's Australia is not just a “broad church” to which the Liberal Party rhetoric alludes. Australians are all colours. The majority are not male. They are not all White. And they are not particularly religious. They are truly diverse (with almost a third of us born overseas).
Certainly, younger voters are not pro-Trump. They are not sexist, racist or bigoted. They want a roof over their heads but not at the expense of someone fleeing a war-torn nation. They are pro equal rights for all Australians and pro decisive action on climate change, and they want to see truly representative democracy in those who seek to govern.
Another interesting fun fact is that, for the most part, younger Australians don't read Murdoch-led publications or watch Sky News.
The younger generations of Australians want to see themselves reflected in their leaders and that reality has not only annihilated the Liberal Party, it has pretty much escaped its attention.
In the days following the election loss, some "interesting" post-mortems have emerged and if these are indicative of where the Liberal Party is heading, there does not appear to be any evidence of soul searching thus far.
To be fair to the Liberals, they have slipped into a false sense of security, emboldened since forever by wealthy backers such as Gina Rinehart and the full force of the flag-flying Murdoch-led media.
One such example involves a discussion between Sky’s Peta Credlin and IPA "senior fellow"John Roskam, during which the latter opined:
“Maybe Dutton wasn’t as toxic as we thought ... because Tim Wilson has won Goldstein.”
Roskam, clearly beside himself with excitement, continued with:
“[Tim] didn’t veer to the Left, he wasn’t talking about climate change, he didn’t deviate from his values…he absolutely repudiated this argument that the Liberal Party needs to move to the Left.”
Yep, ‘cos that’s the lesson to be had from this election, according to the now firmly Far-Right Coalition.
In reality, Australians want the Far-Right-crazy dialled down, not up and it is the opinion of this publication that it will take the Tories some time to understand this new reality.
Hopefully, Prime Minister Albanese will embrace the faith placed in him by the vast majority of Australians, shut the door on the "culture wars" once and for all, and deliver a bolder, more progressive agenda in line with today's Australia.
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Follow managing editor Michelle Pini on Bluesky @michellepini.bsky.social and Independent Australia on Bluesky @independentaus.bsky.social.
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