Dutton Ends Fourth Week of Campaigning on Shaky Ground as Final Countdown Begins
With just one week left until Australians cast their votes, Opposition Leader Peter Dutton is facing mounting pressure to consolidate support, closing out a turbulent fourth week on the campaign trail.
The week was always set to be challenging for both major parties, bracketed by Easter and Anzac Day, and complicated further by school holidays and the opening of early voting.
The sudden death of Pope Francis on Easter Monday added an unexpected pause to campaigning, with both Mr Dutton and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese suspending their Tuesday schedules to pay their respects. However, both leaders returned to the spotlight that night for the third leaders’ debate, aired on Channel Nine, where Mr Dutton was widely regarded as the winner.
“It was very close, but Dutton’s best performance so far. And given this election is all about cost of living, he edged it,” said political editor Charles Croucher.
That victory was a rare highlight in an otherwise rocky week.
On Wednesday, Mr Dutton travelled to Perth to announce a $21 billion defence strategy aimed at boosting military spending to 3 per cent of GDP. But the announcement was quickly overshadowed by scrutiny over funding sources and internal party controversies.
Coalition defence spokesperson Andrew Hastie found himself defending remarks made in a 2017 interview, where he questioned the inclusion of women in frontline combat roles. While he acknowledged the comments, he rejected claims he was calling for a change in policy.
“All combat roles remain open to women – but we will maintain high standards,” he said.
Adding to the week’s turbulence, Liberal candidate Ben Britton was disendorsed after past comments surfaced opposing women in combat roles – views the party said did not align with its current stance.
Later in the week, Mr Dutton turned his focus to domestic violence, announcing a $90 million Coalition package to support victims and launch a national register of convicted abusers. While the initiative received bipartisan backing, a press conference in Hobart quickly turned heated.
The Opposition Leader was pressed on a range of contentious issues, including plans to cut 41,000 public service jobs, the Coalition’s stance on EV rebates, and his lack of site visits to proposed nuclear energy locations. A confusion over the continuation of $3 billion in EV subsidies also raised eyebrows, with campaign officials later walking back his earlier remarks.
Mr Dutton wrapped up Thursday by returning to one of his headline promises – a 25-cent cut to the fuel excise – making his 14th campaign stop at a petrol station.
Campaigning paused again for Anzac Day, with Mr Dutton attending two services in his Brisbane electorate of Dickson before traveling to Townsville for commemorative events alongside veteran and MP Phil Thompson. Mining magnate Gina Rinehart also made headlines at an Anzac Day event, calling for a Trump-style increase in Australia’s defence budget.
Back in Queensland, Mr Dutton was warmly received at local services, enjoying a brief moment of ease with constituents. But controversy continued to simmer, as Labor candidate Ali France faced criticism for previously sharing a doctored image of Dutton in a Nazi uniform.
Dutton’s visit to Townsville on Friday wrapped up the week. There, he mingled with an enthusiastic crowd at the local RSL, where cheers of “Prime Minister” could be heard—though he was humorously jeered for refusing to do a shoey.
As the fifth and final week begins, the Opposition Leader’s campaign remains on uncertain footing, with polls still tight and the outcome far from guaranteed.
