Last week critics of Julia Gillard said that if voter polls did not lift she should step aside as prime minister.
The latest Newspoll in The Australian on Tuesday shows that things have just got worse – Labor has dropped below 30 per cent for the first time in three months.
Only 28 per cent, two percentage points off its record low, of voters would tick the Labor box, compared with 31 per cent in early July. Meanwhile the coalition vote slipped two points to 46 per cent.
But at the same time, voter satisfaction with Opposition Leader Tony Abbott is at its worst level on record – 30 per cent – despite the coalition maintaining a commanding lead of 56 per cent to 44 per cent on two party-preferred terms.
There is a silver lining for Mr Abbott: he has extended his lead over Ms Gillard as preferred prime minister to four points – 40 per cent to 36 per cent.
The poll shows that Australians can’t be made to change their views despite the continuing shower of cash handouts from the government to middle Australia.
Last week, government whip Joel Fitzgibbon, a Kevin Rudd supporter, told ABC television that if leaders stay unpopular for long enough “they’ll inevitably stop leading the party”.
The Australian says that while Ms Gillard retains strong caucus support, her critics argue that if polls do not improve over coming months, she should be asked to stand aside.
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