Peter Dutton was counting on an angry protest vote in the Dunkley byelection to humiliate the government and prove the Liberal Party could retake power in Canberra.
The opposition leader gained the protest he wanted, but not the proof he needs.
Labor candidate Jodie Belyea has held the seat of Dunkley for the government.Credit: Penny Stephens
The swing against the government showed that Dutton tapped into a real frustration with Labor over the cost of living, but nothing like the force that some of his allies predicted.
“What we’re hearing from voters on the ground is there is this white-hot anger, there is this fury,” said Liberal senator Jane Hume only a few days ago.
If there was fury, however, it would have swept the Liberals into the seat and given Prime Minister Anthony Albanese an embarrassing loss. If there was white-hot anger, it would have bruised Albanese by cutting his narrow majority in parliament.
The protest was significant, but not special. It was in line with byelections over recent decades. In the end, the swing of 3.8 per cent was close to the average swing of about 3.5 per cent against governments at byelections over the past four decades.
Dutton attacked the government on the cost of living with plenty of ammunition at his disposal. Interest rates have risen a dozen times since Albanese took office, while inflation has given voters real cause for grief at the supermarket.
The Liberals believe they also gained from a more recent government decision: the fuel emission standards they call a “ute tax” because of claims by carmakers – as yet untested and based only on modelling – that stricter standards will make vehicles like the Toyota Hi-Lux more expensive.
The one word that sums up the Dunkley byelection result
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02.03.2024
Peter Dutton was counting on an angry protest vote in the Dunkley byelection to humiliate the government and prove the Liberal Party could retake power in Canberra.
The opposition leader gained the protest he wanted, but not the proof he needs.
Labor candidate Jodie Belyea has held the seat of Dunkley for the government.Credit: Penny Stephens
The swing against the government showed that Dutton tapped into a real........
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