Early voting in Australia’s federal election began yesterday, with the opposition party hoping the first ballots would reflect its lead over the government in opinion polls.
Voters began casting their ballots at 550 voting stations around the country as two new opinion polls showed the center-left Labor Party opposition had extended its lead over Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s conservative coalition.
Voting is compulsory in Australia and almost 17 million adults in a population of 26 million people are expected to vote. Pre-poll voting is available to those unable to vote on May 21 for reasons including work or travel. People conscious of the risks of COVID-19 are expected to vote early to avoid the larger crowds at polling booths on May 21.
Photo: EPA-EFE
Opposition leader Anthony Albanese said government lawmakers were discouraging electors from voting early in the hope that Labor’s lead would evaporate before election day.
“The bells are tolling for the Morrison government because early voting starts today,” Albanese said. “We want people to participate in our democracy and to vote whenever is convenient.”
Morrison said many voters had yet to decide which candidate they will support.
“As Australians are going to those polls, they’re really starting to focus on the choice that they have to make, and it’s a choice between strength, a strong economy and a weaker one under Labor,” Morrison said.
Morrison called the election for the last date available to him to maximize the time he had to discredit Albanese as a potential government leader. Using the same tactic in 2019, Morrison defied most opinion polls by leading his coalition to a narrow victory.
His coalition is now seeking a rare fourth three-year term.
More than 40 percent of votes were cast before the 2019 election date, and that proportion is expected to increase in the current election.
Many observers say the government’s popularity has been harmed by the Australian central bank’s decision last week to raise interest rates for the first time in 11 years to curb inflation. It was the first time that the Reserve Bank of Australia has lifted the cash rate during an election campaign.
Some polls are suggesting a rare hung parliament that would lead to Morrison or Albanese forming a minority government with the support of unaligned lawmakers.
FLYBY: The object, appears to be traveling more than 60 kilometers per second, meaning it is not bound by the sun’s orbit, astronomers studying 3I/Atlas said Astronomers on Wednesday confirmed the discovery of an interstellar object racing through the solar system — only the third-ever spotted, although scientists suspect many more might slip past unnoticed. The visitor from the stars, designated 3I/Atlas, is likely the largest yet detected, and has been classified as a comet, or cosmic snowball. “It looks kind of fuzzy,” said Peter Veres, an astronomer with the International Astronomical Union’s Minor Planet Center, which was responsible for the official confirmation. “It seems that there is some gas around it, and I think one or two telescopes reported a very short tail.” Originally known as A11pl3Z before
Hundreds of protesters marched through the Mexican capital on Friday denouncing gentrification caused by foreigners, with some vandalizing businesses and shouting “gringos out!” The demonstration in the capital’s central area turned violent when hooded individuals smashed windows, damaged restaurant furniture and looted a clothing store. Mexico City Government Secretary Cesar Cravioto said 15 businesses and public facilities were damaged in what he called “xenophobic expressions” similar to what Mexican migrants have suffered in other countries. “We are a city of open arms... there are always ways to negotiate, to sit at the table,” Cravioto told Milenio television. Neighborhoods like Roma-Condesa
‘CONTINUE TO SERVE’: The 90-year-old Dalai Lama said he hoped to be able to continue serving ‘sentient beings and the Buddha Dharma’ for decades to come The Dalai Lama yesterday said he dreamed of living for decades more, as the Buddhist spiritual leader prayed with thousands of exiled Tibetans on the eve of his 90th birthday. Thumping drums and deep horns reverberated from the Indian hilltop temple, as a chanting chorus of red-robed monks and nuns offered long-life prayers for Tenzin Gyatso, who followers believe is the 14th reincarnation of the Dalai Lama. Looking in good health, dressed in traditional maroon monk robes and a flowing yellow wrap, he led prayers — days after confirming that the 600-year-old Tibetan Buddhist institution would continue after his death. Many exiled Tibetans
Dozens of residents have evacuated remote islands in southern Japan that have been shaken by nearly 1,600 earthquakes in recent weeks, the local mayor said yesterday. There has been no major physical damage on hardest-hit Akuseki island, even after a magnitude 5.1 quake that struck overnight, said Toshima Mayor Genichiro Kubo, who is based on another island. However, the almost nonstop jolts since June 21 have caused severe stress to area residents, many of whom have been deprived of sleep. Of the 89 residents of Akuseki, 44 had evacuated to the regional hub of Kagoshima by Sunday, while 15 others also left another
RSS