Australia ousts PM Scott Morrison, ending years of conservative rule
SYDNEY — Australia delivered a stinging defeat to the ruling conservative coalition on Saturday in what amounted to a personal rebuke of Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s abrasive brand of leadership.
The result paves the way for opposition leader Anthony Albanese to become the next prime minister. But it was unclear whether his center-left Labor Party would win an outright majority or be forced to negotiate with a handful of independent and Greens candidates elected on platforms of combating climate change.
Australians faced a stark choice between the combative conservative incumbent and the progressive promising a sunnier style.
Polls suggest Morrison’s pugilistic approach to governance has exhausted Australians, hampering his Liberal-National coalition as it aimed to reach a decade in power. Morrison, who took office in 2018, admitted recently to rubbing some the wrong way. He compared himself to a “bulldozer.”
His opponent, Labor Party leader Anthony Albanese, has described himself as a “builder” who will boost wages and broaden opportunity. But after early stumbles, it was unclear whether he’d built enough momentum to oust his sharp-elbowed rival.
Vinall reported from Melbourne