After yesterday’s Newspoll shocker, which showed Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s approval rating plummeting from 45% to 37%:
A Guardian Essential Poll, released today, also shows Morrison’s voter approval rating crashing:
The prime minister’s handling of the bushfire crisis has seen his disapproval rating rise 9 points from 43% in December to 52%…
The survey, undertaken from 7-11 January, also shows Anthony Albanese has overtaken Morrison as preferred prime minister for the first time since he became leader of the Labor party following the May election.
As the government fends off criticism of its response to the fires, the survey of 1,081 voters shows a shift in the number of people who disapprove of Morrison’s performance, which has increased from 43% in December to 52%.
This has been driven by an increase in those who strongly disapprove – up from 22% in December to 32%…
The number of Labor voters who now “strongly disapprove” of Morrison’s performance has increased from 36% in December to 52%, indicating an increased polarisation of political views compared to last year…
As support for Morrison has softened, so too has his standing as preferred prime minister, with 39% now saying Albanese would be better in the role, compared to 36% for Morrison.
Leith van Onselen is Chief Economist at the MB Fund and MB Super. He is also a co-founder of MacroBusiness.
Leith has previously worked at the Australian Treasury, Victorian Treasury and Goldman Sachs.
