Speaker 1: Did you come here tonight expecting to party?
Speaker 2: Yes, I did, a real name, but I don't think
Speaker 2: it would be this good. Yeah.
Speaker 3: Good.
Speaker 2: Against all expectations, Anthony Albernizi has led the Labor Party
Speaker 2: to victory with an increased majority, winning a sway the
Speaker 2: seats across the country for the coalition. The outcome is
Speaker 2: devastating and Peter Dutton is out of a job. On
Speaker 2: top of that, the next generation of Liberal leadership has
Speaker 2: been wiped off the electoral map, setting the party back
Speaker 2: for years to come. From Schwartz Media, I'm Daniel James.
Speaker 2: This is seven am. Today we take you inside Anthony
Speaker 2: Albernese's election night party with special correspondent for the Saturday Paper,
Speaker 2: Jason Gottsukis. We find out how labored to find the
Speaker 2: odds and what it means for the country. It's Sunday,
Speaker 2: May four.
Speaker 4: Australians have chosen to face global challengers the Australian way,
Speaker 4: looking after each other while building for the future.
Speaker 2: And to serve these values.
Speaker 4: Meet these challengers, seize these opportunities and build that better
Speaker 4: and stronger future. Australians have chosen a majority Labor government.
Speaker 2: Jason, We've just come from the room where Anthony Albinezi
Speaker 2: gave his victory speech to I'm a rard of ALP supporters,
Speaker 2: followers and true believers. What did he have to say?
Speaker 1: Well, I haven't heard Labor supporters cheer as loudly and
Speaker 1: with as much passion in their cheers as since nineteen
Speaker 1: ninety three, when Paul Kenny, of course, won that famous victory,
Speaker 1: which he described as a victory for the true believers,
Speaker 1: the sweetest victory of all. I think everyone in that
Speaker 1: room tonight felt this victory was even sweeter because Labor
Speaker 1: was expected to at best win minority. But they've won
Speaker 1: a thumping majority win and you could hear the relief,
Speaker 1: the joy in the voices of those cheering there tonight.
Speaker 1: I thought the Prime Minister sounded a lot more confident
Speaker 1: than he did in his twenty twenty two victory speech.
Speaker 1: And one of the things that he talked about was,
Speaker 1: you know, kindness.
Speaker 4: For the strength to show courage in adversity and kindness
Speaker 4: to those in need.
Speaker 1: Many times he talked about Australian values and how the
Speaker 1: Labor Party has held true to these values.
Speaker 4: We do not seek our inspiration overseas, we find.
Speaker 2: It right here in our values.
Speaker 4: And in our people.
Speaker 1: He talked about optimism and determination and these enduring foundations
Speaker 1: of fairness and equality. But the biggest cheer at the
Speaker 1: end of that list was when he pulled out his
Speaker 1: Medicare carpet.
Speaker 4: This card is not Labor red or Liberal blue, it
Speaker 4: is green and gold, and.
Speaker 1: The crowd absolutely loved that and nearly lifted the roof
Speaker 1: off the auditorium up there.
Speaker 2: Did the scale of the victory surprise you? Well?
Speaker 1: A shock result in my view, Daniel. We saw some
Speaker 1: polls like the Yugov poll suggesting that a result like
Speaker 1: this was possible, but not many people, I think, believed
Speaker 1: that it possible. Perhaps a few people inside the Labor
Speaker 1: Brains Trust did think it was possible. I heard rumors
Speaker 1: of the Prime Minister telling journalists last week that Labour
Speaker 1: would win more than eighty seats. He's been proven right.
Speaker 1: Never in my wildest imagination did I think that was possible.
Speaker 1: This is a stunning result for the Prime Minister and
Speaker 1: for the Australian Labor Party.
Speaker 2: What in these very early hours of the victory. What
Speaker 2: could you possibly put that down to?
Speaker 1: I think a number of factors that all came together
Speaker 1: at the right time for the ALP. But I think
Speaker 1: as early as January twenty twenty three, Paul Erickson, the
Speaker 1: National Secretary of the Labor Party, had identified the key
Speaker 1: problem with the coalition and that was Peter Dutton himself,
Speaker 1: and I think they started to work out how they
Speaker 1: would showcase that to their advantage as best they could.
Speaker 1: We saw a bit of a test run in the
Speaker 1: Dunkley by election in twenty twenty three. They ran a
Speaker 1: very tight campaign that was very focused on Peter Dutton
Speaker 1: and his unpopularity. It worked for them and they've just
Speaker 1: hammered that home.
Speaker 2: So when we're talking about the scope of the victory, Jason,
Speaker 2: what seats in particular surprised you that Labor was able
Speaker 2: to claim victory in well?
Speaker 1: Right throughout this campaign I have been hearing from Liberal
Speaker 1: Party strategists that they were expecting to make big gains
Speaker 1: in traditional labor stronghold seats like where were Whitlam in
Speaker 1: New South Wales, Hawk in Victoria, Gorton in Victoria, this
Speaker 1: kind of traditional safe labor territory, and Labor has increased
Speaker 1: their majorities in those seats and held on to them
Speaker 1: very comfortably. And I think This is a huge blow
Speaker 1: for the Liberal Party strategists that were.
Speaker 2: That were going after these seats hard.
Speaker 1: In a big way. We saw Peter Dutton campaigning in
Speaker 1: Melton in Victoria last Sunday and he was championing that
Speaker 1: fact that here is a Liberal leader in Melton of
Speaker 1: all places, and they suggested that they had a big
Speaker 1: chance to win that seat. But not only did they
Speaker 1: not win it, they suffered a swing against them, and
Speaker 1: I think that shows that the Liberal Party has deep problems.
Speaker 1: And then there are the seats that Labor has picked
Speaker 1: up unexpectedly, like Bradden in Tasmania, a massive swing to
Speaker 1: the Labor Party in Bradon bridget Archer, the Liberal moderate
Speaker 1: who's held on to the marginal seat of Bass for
Speaker 1: so long, has been completely wiped off the electoral map.
Speaker 1: Yere other seats in Queensland like Petree, Likeheart, seats that
Speaker 1: we never thought the Labor Party could win. And of
Speaker 1: course the biggest prize of all, the seat of Dixon,
Speaker 1: Peter Dutton's seat Ali France. It's her third time trying
Speaker 1: to win this seat. She's finally prevailed and Peter Dutton
Speaker 1: is no longer a member of Parliament. It's extraordinary that
Speaker 1: this could.
Speaker 2: Happen, coming up after the break. What Peter Dutton's loss
Speaker 2: means for the future of the Liberal Party.
Speaker 3: Well, tonight's not denight that we wanted for the Liberal Party,
Speaker 3: or for our coalition, or adeed for our country. But
Speaker 3: we've worked hard every day over the course of the
Speaker 3: last three years to do our best for our amazing country.
Speaker 3: One of the great.
Speaker 2: Honors, Jason. As we know, Peter Dutton lost his seat.
Speaker 2: So let's talk about his campaign. How did you rate it?
Speaker 1: Well, he ran a terrible campaign. It's an absolutely devastating
Speaker 1: result for the Liberal Party. I can't think of a
Speaker 1: time when an opposition leader has ever lost their seat,
Speaker 1: especially up against a first term government. So it's a
Speaker 1: catastrophic defeat for the Liberal Party and Peter Dutton must
Speaker 1: wear the blame for that. He just hasn't done enough
Speaker 1: work to get the Liberal Party even within striking distance
Speaker 1: for the next election. This puts the Liberal Party back
Speaker 1: at least you would think another two terms, and no
Speaker 1: one saw that coming. And I think the Liberal Party
Speaker 1: really does have an existential crisis facing it now. Is
Speaker 1: this a party that can get back into government? It's
Speaker 1: an open question right now, because they have been completely
Speaker 1: wiped out in Victoria. They've suffered massive swings against them
Speaker 1: in Queensland, this is their stronghold. They've lost seats in
Speaker 1: New South Wales that no one ever dreamt that they
Speaker 1: could lose, seats like Banks, which is held by David Coleman,
Speaker 1: Hughes held by Jenny Ware even thought that it was
Speaker 1: possible that people like that could lose their seats. Michael
Speaker 1: Sooker in Victoria's lost his seat. Keith Wallahan in Victoria's
Speaker 1: lost his seat. This is the sort of the future
Speaker 1: of the Liberal Party here and they have been completely out.
Speaker 1: It's a devastating result for them.
Speaker 2: So we're too now for the Liberal Party, for the coalition.
Speaker 2: I mean, it's a devastating result. The future generations of
Speaker 2: leaders have been wiped out. Any speculation or any early
Speaker 2: discussion about who might take over the party from here.
Speaker 1: Well, I think Dan teen has held his seat in
Speaker 1: the rural Victorian seat of Wan and I think Dan
Speaker 1: ten is going to be a contender for the Liberal leadership.
Speaker 1: He's very experienced, he's got quite a level head on him.
Speaker 1: I think he's quite presentable, so I think he'll be
Speaker 1: a contender. I think Andrew Hasty in Western Australia is
Speaker 1: going to be a contender, assuming of course, that he
Speaker 1: holds his seat. We assume that he will. I think
Speaker 1: Andrew Hasty is a very talented politician. He's got a
Speaker 1: big future ahead of him. I'm sure that he will
Speaker 1: consider putting up his hand. Why I say consider is
Speaker 1: that he's quite an inexperienced politician and he might decide
Speaker 1: that he's not ready to put up his hand. And
Speaker 1: then you have Angus Taylor, of course in New South Wales,
Speaker 1: and I think Angus Taylor would be the favorite to
Speaker 1: probably win the leadership. The problem is, Angus Taylor is
Speaker 1: not that popular with his colleagues and he's not that
Speaker 1: popular with voters.
Speaker 2: But he might be the right.
Speaker 1: Person to take the Liberal Party through the next year
Speaker 1: or two years, whether he's the person that leads the
Speaker 1: party to the next election. If of course he wins
Speaker 1: the leadership, I would think he might struggle to lead
Speaker 1: the party through a full term, given how unpopular he
Speaker 1: is and how unskilled he is at the art of politics.
Speaker 2: Jason, everyone thought that Victoria was a wild card in
Speaker 2: this election and that results could go either way. A
Speaker 2: lot if people believe they would go towards the coalition.
Speaker 2: What happened in Victoria tonight.
Speaker 1: The Liberal Party was wiped out in Victoria. I can't
Speaker 1: really think that the Liberal Party holds any of the
Speaker 1: Metropolitan Melbourne seats. These used to be the jewels in
Speaker 1: the crown of the Liberal Party. Robert Menzies, of course,
Speaker 1: is from Victoria. The party founder from Victoria. Now hold
Speaker 1: a seat in the whole state. So a real crisis
Speaker 1: there for the Liberal Party, and so unexpected given that
Speaker 1: Cinder Allen, the Labor Premier in Victoria, has seen to
Speaker 1: be weighing down the Labor brand there. But that proved
Speaker 1: to be a complete mirage and it had no impact
Speaker 1: on the campaign. In fact, they've gone backwards in Victoria.
Speaker 1: So I think they have to completely rethink the strategy there.
Speaker 1: The other thing I'd say about the Liberal Party's campaign
Speaker 1: is that in the Dunkly by election, what we saw
Speaker 1: was from the coalition a heavy emphasis on crime. But
Speaker 1: crime is a state issue. Didn't cut through in the
Speaker 1: Dunkey by election, and it certainly did not cut through
Speaker 1: in the federal election. And we heard Peter Dutton and
Speaker 1: all of his leading frontbenches repeatedly come back to this
Speaker 1: issue of crime rising crime, But I think voters know
Speaker 1: it's got nothing to do with the federal government. It's
Speaker 1: a state issue. And I don't know why the Liberals
Speaker 1: keep banging that drum because it is a loser for them,
Speaker 1: and they lost big on that issue tonight.
Speaker 2: I think. So I haven't been around so many happy
Speaker 2: people before in my life, Jason. Things were getting pretty
Speaker 2: loose up there. How do you think things are going
Speaker 2: to play out into the night and beyond.
Speaker 1: I think it's going to get a lot looser tonight.
Speaker 1: People are going to have a lot more of this
Speaker 1: elbow pale ale that's been handed out for free in
Speaker 1: the room. There quite a nice beer. I have to say,
Speaker 1: it's got a portrait of a very game. The Prime
Speaker 1: Minister said he talked about going back to work tomorrow.
Speaker 4: From tomorrow tomorrow back at work. Maybe not everyone here
Speaker 4: and that's probably for the best.
Speaker 1: Enjoy tonight, but tomorrow the work on the second term starts,
Speaker 1: and so I think all attention will now turn to well,
Speaker 1: who gets what jobs in the new ministry. The Prime
Speaker 1: Minister signal during the campaign that there was likely to
Speaker 1: be a significant revamp of the ministry. There's a lot
Speaker 1: of talented people on that backbench who are going to
Speaker 1: be looking for a promotion. And then, of course, I
Speaker 1: think the more interesting story is going to be, well,
Speaker 1: what happens to the coalition. They obviously have to elect
Speaker 1: a new leader and they have to work out what
Speaker 1: went wrong, What policies are they going to keep, which
Speaker 1: ones are they going to drop. I think the first
Speaker 1: policy that they're going to be asked about is this
Speaker 1: nuclear policy, and whoever takes over the leadership of the
Speaker 1: party's going to have to make a decision I think
Speaker 1: very early as to whether to dump that policy. There
Speaker 1: will be huge pressure on the Liberal leader to do
Speaker 1: exactly that, because clearly this policy has been a huge
Speaker 1: drag on the Liberal vote and I think they'll have
Speaker 1: to dump that pretty quickly. And then what happens to
Speaker 1: the whole climate change was I think the Liberal Party
Speaker 1: is going to have to decide once and for all
Speaker 1: whether it does support the energy transition to net zero.
Speaker 1: They're going to have to get serious about it. The
Speaker 1: climate change policy has been completely repudiated, So some difficult
Speaker 1: times ahead I think for the coalition.
Speaker 2: Jason, thank you so much for your time.
Speaker 1: Thanks Daniel,