Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s personal approval rating has hit positive territory in Newspoll for the first time in two years. Photo: Thomas Lucraft.
Anthony Albanese is cementing his popularity with Australian voters, with the latest Newspoll showing more people are satisfied with his performance than those who are dissatisfied.
It is the first Newspoll in two years to give the Prime Minister such a tick of approval, but since his thumping federal election win in May, his standing has remained high.
The Newspoll was published on Monday (18 August) following a survey of 1283 voters, which was conducted online over four days between 11 and August.
It places the Labor Party with a strong lead over the Coalition at 56 per cent to 44 per cent on a two-party-preferred basis.
The previous Newspoll, taken in July, had Labor on 57 per cent and the Coalition at 43 per cent.
This most recent survey has Labor’s primary vote unchanged since the July poll at 36 per cent, while the Coalition’s support rose one percentage point to 30 per cent.
The Greens remain steady on 12 per cent, One Nation is up one point to 9 per cent, while independents and other minor parties suffered a 2-point dip to 13 per cent.
It is in Mr Albanese’s approval rating, however, that would give the PM the most cause for celebration.
His net approval rating has jumped from zero to +3, with 49 per cent of voters indicating they were satisfied with his performance, against 46 per cent who said they were dissatisfied.
September 2023 was the last time Mr Albanese’s net approval rating in a Newspoll was in positive territory.
Opposition Leader Sussan Ley’s net approval rating dropped two percentage points since the July poll, from -7 to -9.
But 21 per cent of the survey’s respondents noted that it was still too early to judge the new Coalition leader’s performance.
Respondents were emphatically clear on who they thought would be the better prime minister, however, with 51 per cent saying Mr Albanese and 31 per cent saying Ms Ley.
The uncommitted percentage on that question was up two points since the last Newspoll, with 18 per cent undecided or choosing not to indicate who they thought would be the better PM.
Both leaders had dropped a point on that question since last month’s survey.
The Prime Minister’s recently announced resolve to recognise Palestinian statehood is more evenly viewed by Australian voters, as indicated by a separate poll also published on Monday.
The Resolve survey, conducted for Nine News, shows voter support for the formal recognition of Palestine is split.
All up, 36 per cent don’t believe recognition will have any tangible impact on the Middle East conflict; 25 per cent believe it will affect the situation; and 40 per cent are unsure about it.
Thirty-two per cent agreed Australia should wait until Hamas is replaced in Gaza and/or Palestine considers recognising Israel’s right to exist, before recognition and statehood are made formal.
On the same question, 24 per cent said recognition should happen regardless of who was in power.
Resolve’s pollster Jim Reed told Nine his survey’s feedback was that recognition was largely symbolic, “which is not to devalue the power of symbols”.
“In this case, people don’t think Australia’s actions will make much, if any, difference on the ground in Gaza.”
Resolve polled 1800 voters between 11 and 16 August.
The Prime Minister has announced that Australia will join France, Canada and Britain in recognising Palestine at the next session of the United Nations General Assembly, to be held in New York in September.
“Australia will recognise the State of Palestine. Australia will recognise the right of the Palestinian people to a state of their own, predicated on the commitments Australia has received from the Palestinian Authority,” Mr Albanese said.
“A two-state solution is humanity’s best hope to break the cycle of violence in the Middle East and to bring an end to the conflict, suffering and starvation in Gaza.”
The Coalition opposed the decision, with Ms Ley insisting that recognition of Palestine without a proper peace plan in place for the Middle East is the wrong course of action.
The Federal Opposition has resolved that a future Coalition government would revoke recognition of Palestine.
“The Coalition wants Israeli hostages to be released, Gazans to be fed and for the war to end,” Ms Ley said.
“The Albanese Government’s decision to recognise a Palestinian state outside of a proper peace and two-state process will not deliver that outcome.
“The decision does not make the world a safer place, expedite the end of the conflict, deliver a two-state solution, see the free flow of aid, support the release of hostages, nor put an end to the terrorist group Hamas.”
