Opposition leader Peter Dutton, head of the conservative Liberal Party, conceded defeat after early counting on Saturday night showed his party would lose, and called Mr Albanese to congratulate him on the win.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s centre-left Labor Party has won the federal election.
Mr Dutton, a sometimes-controversial former cabinet minister and police officer, also lost his seat of Dickson in Brisbane to the Labor candidate. He had held the seat for 24 years.
The Liberal Party leader said he accepted “full responsibility” for his party’s loss and “tonight is not the night” he wanted.
“We didn’t do well enough during this campaign,” he added.
Australia’s Prime Minister Anthony Albanese speaks at a Labor party election night event, after local media projected the Labor Party’s victory, on the day of the Australian federal election, in Sydney, Australia, May 3, 2025. REUTERS/Hollie Adams TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY
Anthony Albanese thanked the Australian people for his victory at an election night party in Sydney. Pic: Reuters
Mr Albanese is the first Australian prime minister to win a second consecutive three-year term in 21 years.
Addressing supporters in Sydney, Mr Albanese said serving as PM is the “greatest honour of my life”.
“And it is with a deep sense of humility and a profound sense of responsibility that the first thing that I do tonight is to say thank you to the people of Australia,” he added.
Leader of the Opposition Peter Dutton speaks, flanked by his wife Kirilly Dutton, sons Tom and Harry, and daughter Rebecca, at the function centre for the 2025 Federal Election, at the Federal Liberal Reception in Brisbane, Australia, May 3, 2025. AAP Image/Mick Tsikas/via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS – THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. NO RESALES. NO ARCHIVE. AUSTRALIA OUT. NEW ZEALAND OUT. NO COMMERCIAL OR EDITORIAL SALES IN NEW ZEALAND. NO COMMERCIAL OR EDITORIAL SALES IN AUSTRALIA.
Peter Dutton, flanked by his wife, sons and daughter, said he took full responsibility for the Liberal Party’s loss. Pic: Reuters
UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer congratulated Mr Albanese on his victory, saying: “The UK and Australia are as close as ever – which goes to show that long-distance friendships can be the strongest.”
Cost-of-living pressures and concerns about US President Donald Trump’s volatile policies had dominated the Australian election campaign.
Supports of Anthony Albanese hugged at a Labor Party election night event after ABC called the result. Pic: Reuters
Supporters of Anthony Albanese celebrate. Pic: Reuters
Labor had branded the opposition leader “Doge-y Dutton” and accused his party of mimicking Mr Trump and his Department of Government Efficiency (Doge).
Mr Albanese’s party had argued that under Mr Dutton, services would be slashed to pay for his party’s nuclear ambitions.
“We’ve seen the attempt to run American-style politics here of division and pitting Australians against each other and I think that’s not the Australian way,” Mr Albanese said.
Mr Dutton’s party blamed government waste by Labor for fuelling inflation and increasing interest rates.
He had pledged to axe more than one in five public service jobs to reduce government spending. Mr Dutton had said he wanted to become the first political leader to oust a first-term government since 1931, when Australians were reeling from the Great Depression.
However, that dream was quashed as the electorate sided with the Labor Party. Both parties had agreed Australia should reach net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, but Mr Dutton said the country should rely on more nuclear power instead of renewable energy sources to deliver less expensive electricity. Listen to The World with Richard Engel and Yalda Hakim every Wednesday. The two campaigns also both focused on Australia’s changing demographics.
The election was the first in which Baby Boomers, born between the end of the Second World War and 1964, were outnumbered by younger voters.
Both parties had promised policies to help first-time buyers in a property market out of reach for many.
