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Opposition leader Peter Dutton said he’s anticipating “some big surprises on election night”, as the enters its final hours.
“I think we’re seeing a 2019 situation, where you’ve got a lot of interesting contests playing on the ground,” he told ABC radio’s AM program on Friday.
The Dutton was referring to was former Liberal prime minister Scott Morrison’s shock election victory over Labor’s Bill Shorten, defying years of opinion polls and public expectation.
“I have always believed in miracles,” Morrison had told supporters during his 2019 victory speech.
With record numbers of early voting, the polls suggest Labor’s momentum over the Coalition is firming.
The final election YouGov survey on Thursday suggested Labor’s two-party preferred support was at 52.9 per cent, with the Coalition at 47.1 per cent. That represents a 0.7 per cent swing to Labor from the 2022 election.
The same analysis projects Labor could win between 76 and 85 seats.
But Dutton believes “there’ll be some big surprises on election night”.
“People have had enough,” he said.
Polls suggest Labor majority within reach
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese agrees that the 2019 election delivered a valuable lesson.
“I think 2019 shows the folly of pretending that you know the outcome of an election before the ballots are counted,” he told ABC AM on Friday.
When asked whether he’s worried this election could deliver a surprise result for the Opposition, Albanese said: “I certainly take nothing for granted.”
“I have a mountain to climb.”
Despite numbers moving in Labor’s favour, earlier polling from March suggested a .
While campaigning in Brisbane on Friday, Albanese once again ruled out any deals with the Greens, but has avoided further detail on what principles he would apply to negotiations.
He instead deflected to Dutton’s comments about should he become the next prime minister.
“It was the moment where he [Dutton] showed that he’d measured up the curtains and was thinking about his position as prime minister that he assumed,” Albanese said.
“I don’t take the Australian people for granted. I’m working my guts out to ensure there’s a majority government tomorrow.”
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