After nine years of Conservative rule, a page is turning in Australia. The outgoing Prime Minister, Scott Morrison, admitted his defeat in the legislative elections on Saturday May 21, even before the announcement of the official results. The leader of the Liberal Party joined his Labor rival, Anthony Albanese, and “congratulated on his electoral victory” the “new prime minister”.
According to projections published by the media after the counting of approximately half of the votes, the Labor Party seemed on the right track to be able to form a government, but was not yet assured of obtaining enough seats in the House of Representatives to form only a parliamentary majority.
Anthony Albanese, 57, is portrayed as a working man, brought up in Sydney council housing by a single mother. Of Italian origin through his father, he will be, if the results are confirmed, the first Australian head of government not to bear an Anglo-Saxon or Celtic name.
Inflation and the climate at the heart of the campaign
During the campaign, both sides tried to seduce voters worried about the rising cost of living, with annual inflation of 5.1% and wages lagging behind in real terms.
In a country plagued by increasingly severe floods, fires and droughts, Labor has pledged to do more for the environment. Coming to power in 2018, Conservative Scott Morrison, 54, has stood out in recent years for his support for the coal and gas industries. He ignored global calls for lower carbon emissions, sticking to the current pledge of -28% by 2030.