Australia’s center-left Labor Party retains power in vote seen as test of anti-Trump sentiment

CNN

By Hilary Whiteman and Angus Watson, CNN

Brisbane and Sydney, Australia (CNN) — Australia’s Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has secured a second term in office in a disastrous night for his conservative rivals, as voters chose stability over change against a backdrop of global turmoil inflicted by US President Donald Trump.

Australia’s return of a left-leaning government follows Canada’s similar sharp swing towards Mark Carney’s Liberal Party, another governing party whose fortunes were transformed by Trump. The loss of Liberal Party leader Peter Dutton’s seat mirrors that of Conservative Party leader Pierre Poilievre.

While Australia wasn’t facing the same threats to its sovereignty as Canada, Trump’s global tariffs and policy swings have undermined Australians’ trust in the US, according to recent surveys.

Albanese’s victory makes him the first Australian prime minister to win re-election for two decades and he will start his second term with at least 87 seats in the 150-seat lower house, according to the most recent estimates.

A clearly emotional Albanese took the stage to cheers just before 10 p.m. local time to thank Australians for choosing a majority Labor government, defying predictions both major parties would lose seats.

“In this time of global uncertainty, Australians have chosen optimism and determination,” Albanese said, at the Labor victory party in Sydney.

Dutton, who had hoped to end the night as prime minister, lost the outer-suburban Brisbane seat that he’s held for more than 20 years, ending a brutal night for the veteran politician who held senior seats in the last Coalition government.

In conceding defeat, Dutton said he accepted full responsibility for the election loss.

“Our Liberal family is hurting across the country tonight,” Dutton said. “We’ve been defined by our opponents in this election, which is not the true story of who we are, but we’ll rebuild from here.”

World powers have been congratulating Albanese. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio called Australia a “valued ally” while UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer said “long-distance friendships can be the strongest.”

After Canada, Australia swings left

The candidates’ ability to deal with the US president had been a talking point of the campaign. Despite criticism that he had been unable to get Trump on the phone, Albanese said they had shared “warm” conversations in the past and he saw no reason not to trust him. Canberra remains a staunch ally of Washington, despite Trump’s tariffs threat.

Dutton entered the five-week campaign on a strong footing. But analysts say his chances were badly damaged by policy misses and reversals, and weighed down by Trump’s wrecking-ball approach to the global order.

By contrast, Albanese’s Labor Party was able to demonstrate a steady hand – striking an authoritative tone in response to Trump’s decision to impose 10% tariffs on Australia, which were later paused, analysts said.

After Trump’s April 2 “Liberation Day” announcement, Albanese called a press conference and, flanked by his foreign and trade ministers, said: “This is not the act of a friend.” In contrast, Dutton struggled to shake off comparisons to Trump by his opponents, not just because some policies appeared to have been inspired by the US leader.

During the campaign, the senator he tapped to become shadow minister for government efficiency declared she wanted to “make Australia great again.” Jacinta Nampijinpa Price later said she didn’t realize she’d said it. Asked Saturday if the Trump comparisons had hurt Dutton, Price said: “If you sling enough mud, it will stick.”

Labor handed a strong mandate

In the last three years, Albanese has been credited with improving relations with China, leading to the lifting of tariffs imposed during his predecessor’s term. His government has also repaired relations with Pacific island nations, in part to prevent Beijing from filling a leadership vacuum. On foreign relations, he’s promised more of the same.

Within Australia, Albanese’s government has been widely criticized for not being aggressive enough in efforts to tame rising living costs during a period of high global inflation. In the years ahead, he’s promised a tax cut, cheaper medicines, lower deposits for first-time buyers and 1.2 million houses to ease the housing crisis.

Albanese first took office in the so-called “climate election” of 2022, with promises to cut Australia’s carbon emissions and reach net zero by 2050. Despite a rapid rollout of renewable projects – enough to power 10 million homes – his government has been criticized for also approving new coal and gas projects.

On Saturday, Albanese reiterated his commitment to climate action in contrast to the rolling assault inflicted by the new US administration on environment agencies and research.

All Australians know “renewable energy is an opportunity we must work together to seize for the future of our economy,” Albanese said to cheers.

The Liberal Party’s loss means Dutton’s plan to build seven nuclear plants at public expense won’t move forward, a proposal critics said was a stalling tactic to extend Australia’s reliance on fossil fuels.

“Today’s election result shows that Australians have comprehensively rejected the Coalition’s Trumpist agenda of climate and nature destruction, and its plan to force dangerous nuclear on communities,” said David Ritter, CEO of Greenpeace Australia Pacific.

A unifying force

Dutton’s loss ends a long political career for the ex-police officer who held high-profile roles as minister for defense, immigration and home affairs in the former Coalition government.

Dutton assumed the Liberal leadership after Morrison’s election loss in 2022 and brought with him a reputation as a strongman of the party’s right wing. During the 2025 election campaign, Dutton chided the prime minister for failing to secure exemptions from the US president’s global tariffs, and said he could have negotiated a better deal.

As polls started to suggest voters were turned off by his Trump-style approach, Dutton seemed to try to put some distance between himself and the US leader. But in the final week of campaigning, he seemed to again tap into Trump rhetoric, referring to Australia’s national broadcaster and left-leaning newspaper The Guardian as “hate media.”

In 2023, Dutton launched himself into contention as prime minister by successfully campaigning against the government’s referendum on the Voice proposal, which included constitutional recognition for Indigenous Australians.

Dutton had called the Voice referendum divisive, because it proposed to give one group recognition over another. For the same reason, he said Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander flags would no longer be present at press conferences under his leadership – because all Australians should be united under one flag. Albanese took the opposing view.

As he claimed victory, Albanese made a deliberate attempt to cast himself as a “kinder” leader, in contrast to the model offered by an administration he accused his rival of emulating.

“Now that the Australian people have made their clear choice, let us reflect on what we have in common, because no matter who you voted for, no matter where you live, no matter how you worship, or who you love, or whether you belong to a culture that has known and cared for this great continent for 65,000 years, or you have chosen our nation as your home and enrich our society with your contribution, we are all Australians,” Albanese said.

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