Australia’s Labor Party Secures Majority as Albanese Celebrates Second Term
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced on Saturday that the Labor Party had achieved a majority in parliament, with more than 45% of votes counted, local media reported.
According to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC), this marks the first time Labor has secured a second term since 2004 — a historic milestone.
Speaking at Labor’s campaign headquarters, Albanese said, “Australians have elected a majority Labor government to uphold our values, tackle today’s challenges, and create a stronger future.”
He added, “We’ll be back to work tomorrow,” emphasizing his commitment to governing effectively over the next three years.
The Prime Minister expressed gratitude to all party candidates, singling out Ali France for her notable victory over Liberal Party leader Peter Dutton in Queensland’s Dickson electorate.
Voting began at 8 a.m. local time (2200 GMT Friday), with over 18 million citizens participating under Australia’s mandatory voting system.
With over 45% of the votes tallied, Labor was leading with more than 80 seats in the House of Representatives — comfortably surpassing the 76 seats needed to form a government.
In a surprising outcome, ABC projections showed that Dutton had lost his seat, marking the first instance in Australian history where an opposition leader failed to retain their seat in a general election.
Dutton reportedly acknowledged defeat and conceded to Ali France at the Liberal Party’s headquarters. “We didn’t perform well enough in this campaign — that’s clear tonight — and I take full responsibility,” he told supporters.
Dutton has previously faced criticism for Islamophobic comments and for allegedly adopting campaign strategies inspired by former U.S. President Donald Trump.
