Australians have slashed their approval of Sussan Ley’s performance after a month of Liberal Party instability, leaks, resignations and sackings, in findings that will pile pressure on the opposition leader and increase speculation about her political future.
Just 33 per cent of voters rated Ley’s performance as either good or very good – a fall of 8 per cent in a single month – while 38 per cent rated her performance as either poor or very poor, up from 32 per cent last month. The finding delivers a net rating of minus 5 for Ley – down from plus 9 last month in a 14 percentage-point decline, well beyond the margin for error.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s performance rating also went backwards: 41 per cent of voters said his performance was good or very good – down from 44 per cent last month – and 47 per cent said it was bad or very bad, up from 45 per cent last month. That is a net drop of five percentage points and a net rating of minus 6, also outside the margin of error.
Nevertheless, as Ley’s approval ratings fell further, Albanese’s lead over her as preferred prime minister has increased by five percentage points in the past month, from 38-26 to 40-23, a net lead of 17 percentage points.
Labor’s primary vote fell from 35 per cent to 34 per cent over the past month – a movement within the margin of error, but it is the second month in a row in which the government lost ground – while the Coalition’s vote rose by one percentage point from 27 to 28 per cent this month after falling by two points last month.
Read the full report here.
