Peter Martin Economics correspondent
July 1, 2013
Well-received: Kevin Rudd on the election trail in the town of Springwood in the lower Blue mountains with local member Susan Templeman and supporter Bennedict Kennedy-Cox wearing an old campaign t-shirt. Photo: James Alcock
Labor voters have overwhelmingly endorsed the decision to replace Julia Gillard with Kevin Rudd.
New findings from a Fairfax ReachTEL poll conducted immediately after the switch show 74 per cent of the Labor voters in Bill Shorten's Victorian electorate of Maribyrnong support the change. Only 19 per cent disapproved.
In Speaker Anna Burke's Melbourne electorate of Chisholm 60 per cent of Labor voters support the switch. Only 24 per cent were opposed. In the Sydney electorate of Blaxland, held by Home Affairs Minister Jason Clare, 68 per cent of Labor voters were in favour. In the electorate of McMahon, held by new Treasurer Chris Bowen, Labor voters' support for the switch exceeded 80 per cent.
Warm welcome: Mr Rudd at the memorial service for Yunupingu on Sunday. Photo: Glenn Campbell
Most Coalition voters oppose the change. The poll shows 60 per cent of Liberal voters disapprove, only 24 per cent approve and 16 per cent are undecided.
Support for the removal of Ms Gillard also divided along gender lines. Among all men, 55 per cent support the change and only 33 per cent oppose it. But among women opinions are evenly balanced - 42 per cent support Ms Gillard's removal, 43 per cent oppose it.
The poll finds a clear majority of voters in all four of the Labor seats believe Kevin Rudd would make a better Prime Minister than Tony Abbott. The margin is a healthy 58 to 42 per cent.
ReachTel used an automated telephone response system to poll around 650 electors in each of the four electorates on Thursday night. The answers were weighted by age and gender.
Mr Abbott ducked a challenge to debate Mr Rudd on the economy on Sunday, telling Network Ten if the new Prime Minister wanted a debate he could recall Parliament.
Mr Rudd had asked Mr Abbott to debate him on economic questions at the National Press Club "sometime next week or sometime the following week".
Mr Rudd said on Friday he wanted "an open public debate, to start off with, on debt and deficit".
Asked if he was scared to debate the Prime Minister, Mr Abbott said he debated him every day.
"I mean, Mr Rudd can recall Parliament if he wishes to have a debate. As soon as he names the election date, then the election debate will be in full swing," he said.
Deputy Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said it was unlikely the Parliament would be recalled ahead of the election.
"That's an option, but I wouldn't book tickets for question time," he told Sky News.
