Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison (AFP file photo)
SYDNEY – Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison called federal elections for May 21 on Sunday, launching a fight to stay in power after three years rocked by floods, bushfires and the COVID-19 pandemic.
Morrison’s conservative government is struggling to woo Australia’s 17 million voters, lagging behind the opposition Labor party in a string of opinion polls despite presiding over a rebounding economy with a 13-year-low jobless rate of four percent.
“This election is about you. No one else. It’s about our country, and it’s about its future,” Morrison said.
“I know Australians have been through a very tough time. I also know that Australia continues to face very tough challenges in the years ahead,” he told a news conference.
The Labor party, led by political veteran Anthony Albanese, will be fighting to end nearly a decade of Liberal-National Party rule in Australia.