Disaster looms for Anthony Albanese as younger voters abandon the Labor Party while support in key states nosedives

Disaster looms for Anthony Albanese as younger voters abandon the Labor Party while support in key states nosedives

• Coalition gaining support according to new polls
• Men and younger voters have swung agains Labor
• READ MORE: International anger erupts over Anthony Albanese’s ‘Trump-style travel ban’ on tourists from up to FIVE countries 

Disaster looms for Anthony Albanese as younger voters support for the Labor Party nosedives in Western Australia and NSW, according to a new poll.

The results from Newspoll show that while Labor is leading 52-48 in two-party-preferred terms, it is down 6 per cent on its election result in WA and sliding in NSW.

However, the support for federal Labor has risen in Queensland.

It appears that men and younger voters have swung towards the Coalition with Labor’s traditional advantage significantly eroded in a 10-point turnaround towards the Liberal-Nationals.

The Prime Minister had been desperately hoping to get things back on track in 2024, following months of rocky polling results on the heels of the Voice, a backflip on tax cuts and the growing cost-of-living crisis.

But the Coalition and Labor are equally split among men at 50-50 for the first time, marking a fall 31 per cent in the primary vote for Labor since the end of last year.

The survey of 1152 voters conducted for The Australian revealed that the Coalition has gained five points to a primary vote of 27 per cent among voters in the 18 to 34 age bracket.

There remains some positives with Labor pulling further ahead with voters between the ages of 35 and 49, following Mr Albanese’s campaign to ­target ‘Middle Australia’.

On a state-by-state comparison, the Coalition is leading in Victoria for the first time, with the government losing ground to the Greens, which have lifted to 16 per cent.

The analysis shows the ­Coalition ahead of Labor in WA and Queensland and drawing level in NSW.

Meanwhile both parties declined in South Australia.

Two-party-preferred, Labor still leading nat­ionally by 52-48.

Mr Albanese is confident that his party will be able to hold on to a majority at the next election but the current trend suggests there is a high chance of a minority Labor government.

Based on the polls, Labor is on track to repeat its results in Victoria and SA and improve slightly in Queensland, so even with the loss of four seats in WA they would likely still have the numbers to form a minority government.

In terms of the preferred Prime Minister, 47 per cent of voters are sticking with Mr Albanese.

Compared to the December analysis, which included the fallout from the defeat of the voice referendum, the average satisfaction rating for Mr Albanese has remained largely unchanged, averaging minus eight in the first quarter of 2024.

Similarly, Liberal leader Peter Dutton’s net negative average of minus 13 has stayed relatively unchanged.

The demographic breakdown shows that Labor has gone backwards in households earning between $50,000 and $150,000.

In saying that, 51 per cent of Aussies surveyed said they were dissatisfied with the way Mr Albanese is doing his job as Prime Minister. However, the same percentage were dissatisfied with the way Peter Dutton is doing his job as Leader of the Opposition.

The Newspoll published last Monday showed a fall in support for Labor compared to the previous poll, with its primary vote dropping to 32 per cent – the second lowest since being elected – and lower than its election result.

The Newspoll analysis covers the period from January 31 to March 22 and includes 3691 voter surveys throughout Australia.

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