• Anthony Albanese claimed victory as the first Australian Prime Minister to clinch a second consecutive three-year term in 21 years.

• Albanese’s centre-left Labor government had been trailing in polls to the conservative Liberal-National coalition as recently as February, but then bounced back as voters grew increasingly alarmed by US President Donald Trump’s tariff threats and sought safe ground.

• The Australian Electoral Commission website projected Labor would win 80 of 150 seats in the House of Representatives, increasing its majority.

• Peter Dutton, leader of the conservative Liberal party, conceded defeat and the loss of his own seat.

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated Albanese on his resounding victory and said he looks forward to working with him to further deepen the India-Australia Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.

Who is Anthony Albanese?

• Anthony Albanese was born on March 2, 1963 in Darlinghurst, New South Wales.

• Albanese was first elected to the Australian Parliament as the member for the Sydney seat of Grayndler in 1996.

• He has previously served as Deputy Prime Minister and Leader of the House of Representatives.

• As Infrastructure Minister and Communications Minister, he delivered nation-building projects, connecting the country through thousands of kilometres of roads and rail, and rolling out the high-speed fibre National Broadband Network.

• He was widely recognised for his ability to bring stakeholders, businesses, and communities together to deliver projects that boosted the economy, enhanced productivity, and improved Australia’s quality of life.

• In 2019, he was unanimously elected as the Leader of the Australian Labor Party.

• Albanese was sworn in as Australia’s 31st Prime Minister on May 23, 2022.

Australian Parliament

• The Parliament consists of two Houses (the Senate and the House of Representatives), and the British Queen, represented in Australia by the Governor General.

• In 1901 the Australian Constitution established the Australian Parliament, also known as the federal Parliament or the Commonwealth Parliament.

• The Senate is one of the two houses of the Australian Federal Parliament. It consists of 76 senators, 12 from each of the six states and two from each of the mainland territories. It shares the power to make laws with the other House of the Parliament, the House of Representatives.

• The House of Representatives is sometimes called “the People’s House” or the “house of government”. There are currently 151 seats in the House of Representatives.

• In Australia, the term of the government is three years. 

• Under Australia’s Constitution each House of Representatives may last no more than three years from the first meeting of the House after an election, but may be dissolved sooner. General elections are then held to elect all members of the House of Representatives.

• The House of Representatives has 151 seats, 76 of which are needed for a majority to form the government. There are 76 Senate seats — 12 for each of the six states and two each for two territories. There are 40 seats up for election — six from each state and the four territory seats. A complex voting system means it may be weeks before final results for the Senate are known.

Role of Governor-General in Australia

• Australia is a constitutional monarchy and the head of state is British Queen Elizabeth II. However, the Queen does not have a role in the day-to-day running of Australia. On the advice of the Prime Minister, the Queen appoints the Governor-General, who is the Queen’s representative in Australia.

• The Australian Constitution delegates certain powers to the Governor-General to act on behalf of the Queen.

Manorama Yearbook app is now available on Google Play Store and iOS App Store