Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard could be heading for a shock defeat at elections on Aug. 21, a new opinion poll showed yesterday, as government infighting and damaging Cabinet leaks threatened to derail her campaign.
However, Gillard, who is still expected to win by most other opinion polls and political experts, vowed to keep on battling to keep the top job.
“Let's be very clear about this, we’re in a fight,” she told reporters while campaigning in Perth. “I am going to keep fighting every day of this election campaign.”
The latest Nielsen poll reversed a solid lead Gillard's Labor party held in the same poll a week ago. Australia's first female prime minister took over barely five weeks ago from unpopular predecessor Kevin Rudd, who was dumped by his own lawmakers.
Support for Labor had dived 6 percentage points to 48 percent, said the poll, published yesterday in the Sydney Morning Herald and the Age newspapers.
It gave the conservative opposition an election-winning 52 percent, after minor parties are eliminated under Australia’s system of transferable voting.
Opinion polls have been erratic but, on balance, they have favored Gillard. The Reuters Poll Trend, a statistical analysis that aims to smooth out the volatility of differing poll results, shows Gillard winning a slightly increased majority.
The new Nielsen poll shows two-thirds of voters still expect Gillard to win, despite many shifting to opposition leader Tony Abbott, but it will still come as a shock for Labor, which is struggling to heal the wounds of Rudd's dumping.
Abbott yesterday dismissed the latest poll results and said he remained “very much the underdog” in the election.
The new poll followed leaks of Cabinet discussions to newspapers which said they showed Gillard, the then-deputy prime minister, had opposed decisions to boost the state pension and paid paternity leave.
“It encompassed the darkest two days of the campaign for the government, which were dominated by damaging Cabinet leaks against Ms Gillard, for which Mr Rudd was blamed,” the Sydney Morning Herald said under a front-page headline “Abbott seizes the lead.”
If the Aug. 21 election were to mirror the latest poll results, the opposition would win an additional 28 seats in the lower house of parliament, 11 more than it needs to form a government, the Sydney Morning Herald said.
Tropical Storm Gaemi strengthened into a typhoon at 2pm yesterday, and could make landfall in Yilan County tomorrow, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. The agency was scheduled to issue a sea warning at 11:30pm yesterday, and could issue a land warning later today. Gaemi was moving north-northwest at 4kph, carrying maximum sustained winds near its center of up to 118.8kph and gusts of 154.8kph. The circumference is forecast to reach eastern Taiwan tomorrow morning, with the center making landfall in Yilan County later that night before departing from the north coast, CWA weather forecaster Kuan Shin-ping (官欣平) said yesterday. Uncertainty remains and
SEA WARNING LIKELY: The storm, named Gaemi, could become a moderate typhoon on Wednesday or Thursday, with the Taipei City Government preparing for flooding A tropical depression east of the Philippines developed into a tropical storm named Gaemi at 2pm yesterday, and was moving toward eastern Taiwan, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Gaemi could begin to affect Taiwan proper on Tuesday, lasting until Friday, and could develop into a moderate typhoon on Wednesday or Thursday, it said. A sea warning for Gaemi could be issued as early as Tuesday morning, it added. Gaemi, the third tropical storm in the Pacific Ocean this typhoon season, is projected to begin moving northwest today, and be closest to Taiwan on Wednesday or Thursday, the agency said. Today, there would likely
DISRUPTIONS: The high-speed rail is to operate as normal, while several airlines either canceled flights or announced early departures or late arrivals Schools and offices in 15 cities and counties are to be closed today due to Typhoon Gaemi, local governments announced last night. The 15 are: Taipei, New Taipei City, Taoyuan, Tainan, Keelung, Hsinchu and Kaohsiung, as well as Yilan, Hualien, Hsinchu, Miaoli, Chiayi, Pingtung, Penghu and Lienchiang counties. People should brace for torrential rainfall brought by the storm, with its center forecast to make landfall on the east coast between tonight and tomorrow morning, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. The agency issued a sea warning for the typhoon at 11:30pm on Monday, followed by a land warning at 11:30am yesterday. As of
CASUALTY: A 70-year-old woman was killed by a falling tree in Kaohsiung as the premier warned all government agencies to remain on high alert for the next 24 hours Schools and offices nationwide are to be closed for a second day today as Typhoon Gaemi crosses over the nation, bringing torrential rain and whipping winds. Gaemi was forecast to make landfall late last night. From Tuesday night, its outer band brought substantial rainfall and strong winds to the nation. As of 6:15pm last night, the typhoon’s center was 20km southeast of Hualien County, Central Weather Administration (CWA) data showed. It was moving at 19kph and had a radius of 250km. As of 3pm yesterday, one woman had died, while 58 people were injured, the Central Emergency Operation Center said. The 70-year-old