There has been a surge in pre-polling, with more than 300,000 Australians casting their ballots on the first day of pre-polling, a figure that has doubled since the 2019 election.
Look back on how Tuesday's events unfolded in our blog.
Key events
- Alan Tudge given strongest indication he will return as Education Minister if Coalition re-elected
- Senior Federal Liberals 'proved to be Liberals first and Victorians second' during pandemic, Andrews says
- 'Every human deserves respect', Albanese says
- Scott Morrison pressed on Katherine Deves' comments
- Thousands turn out early for pre-polling
- Liberal candidate's posters vandalised with 'obscene images'
- Greens announce $24 billion environmental plan with goal of stopping all extinctions by 2030
Live updates
By Jessica Riga
We'll wrap up our live coverage here
Thanks for joining us today!
Remember, tomorrow we're hosting a Q&A session at 12pm AEST with Antony Green, Patricia Karvelas and Andrew Probyn where they'll be answering YOUR burning election questions! So make sure you submit your questions to the blog tomorrow morning or by using this form here.
We'll be back bright and early to continue covering the campaign trail, PLUS we'll be live blogging the third and final leaders' debate tomorrow night.
Lots to look forward to! Make sure you get some rest in preparation, I know I will be.
By Jessica Riga
'Sad to think others might go though the same thing': Your thoughts on adding basic dental to Medicare
In regards to dental & medicare - basic dental should absolutely be included in medicare coverage. (In the least Debbie-Downer way possible) my dad died due to complications in part because he couldn't afford adequate dental care and the wait for publicly funded dental was so long that the infection had time to spread. That was 15 years ago, it's sad to think that this hasn't changed and others might also go through the same thing.
-Rachel
By Jessica Riga
By Jessica Riga
Anthony Albanese campaigns in Melbourne
The Opposition leader has spent the day campaigning in Melbourne with Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews.
By Jessica Riga
Alan Tudge given strongest indication he will return as Education Minister if Coalition re-elected
Cabinet Minister Alan Tudge has given the strongest indication yet he will return to his former job as education minister if the Coalition wins the May 21 election.
The Liberal MP took leave from that role last year, after his former staffer Rachelle Miller, who he also had a consensual affair with, accused him of being abusive in their relationship.
It emerged earlier in the campaign that Mr Tudge remained a Cabinet minister, despite not being paid as a minister and there being an acting minister covering his portfolio.
Ms Miller is expected to be paid more than $500,000 as part of a settlement agreement with the Commonwealth.
Mr Tudge told Sky News he was unaware of the details of that payment and had instead been focusing on his suburban Melbourne electorate.
“I’ve been very busy in my local electorate here, you can see from my social media, and I stood down from being Education Minister some months ago now, for family, for health reasons, and to concentrate on my electorate, and that’s exactly what I’ve been doing,” Mr Tudge said.
“The Prime Minister has made clear that should we be re-elected and I’m in a position to step back up then I will do so”.
Scott Morrison has repeatedly said he expected Mr Tudge would return to Cabinet after the election.
An independent investigation was launched, but no evidence was presented to it that could lead to a finding Mr Tudge had breached the ministerial standards, as they stood at the time of the allegations.
Ms Miller did not take part in that probe, critical of how it had been established and concerned it was framed in a way to protect Mr Tudge.
By political reporter Alexandra Humphries
By Jessica Riga
Scott Morrison campaigns in Sydney
The Prime Minister was joined by NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet this morning as he continued his campaign.
By Jessica Riga
Voter frustration is rising as pre-polling begins
The Brisbane river forms the border between two fascinating electoral races this year, with The Greens campaigning hard to unseat Liberal MP for Brisbane Trevor Evans, and Labor MP for Griffith Terri Butler.
ABC Radio Brisbane Mornings host Rebecca Levingston tells James Glenday and Melissa Clarke that as pre-polling begins, voters are expressing disappointment and frustration with the major parties.
- You can listen to the latest Australia Votes episode here or on the ABC Listen app.
By Jessica Riga
Fancy having lunch with some ABC political experts tomorrow?
Our panel of experts will be answering your questions about the upcoming election from 12pm AEST on Wednesday, May 11.
Make sure you submit your questions in the morning, but if you're super keen you can start sending in your questions now using this form.
By Jessica Riga
One called teachers 'duds', the other says there's a push towards a 'culture war'. Where is Australia's education system headed?
Experts say Australian education is at a crossroads.
Despite record investment, results are falling across all schools, even as the government and parents spend record amounts on educating children.
So will the election bring change?
By Jessica Riga
'It should be included': More thoughts on adding basic dental to Medicare
My husband and I always put the kids needs and household needs first. This year, we were able to prioritise our own dental care and have made the appointment to go in. In the last ten years I have been to the dentist 3 times.
-Cheap teeth
100% a basic dental yearly checkup/clean should be included in medicare.
I'm 36, and honestly am not sure if I've been to the dentist since I finished UNI when I was on my parents insurance.
Even with an ok income, health insurance is WAY too much money for me to be able to afford it on top of other expenses.
I lived in the UK for 2 years (where historically dental issues were widespread), they now include it in their national health scheme and people actually go. prevention is better than having people end up with worse/more expensive dental/health issues.
-36_Melbourne
By Jessica Riga
Albanese 'not shocked' Clive Palmer is preferencing Liberals in key seats
Clive Palmer’s UAP says he’ll preference the Liberals ahead of Labor in three key seats Labor is hoping to win. How much harder will this make it for Labor?
"[The] people’s vote is powerful. They can change the country for the better, if they vote Labor," Opposition Leader Anthony Albanese told RN Breakfast.
"We’re not completely shocked by that. But what we will do is continue to seek out people’s first preference at this election, including in those key seats, but there are seats right around the country; people’s vote [is very powerful] every individual’s vote is powerful.
By Jessica Riga
Anthony Albanese urges Fair Work Commission to bear in mind cost of living
The ACTU has upped its minimum wage claim to 5.5% to try and grow pay packets faster than surging inflation.
Labor leader Anthony Albanese has not endorsed the wage claim, but says the Fair Work Commission must ensure that workers don't go backwards.
"People are really struggling out there. And the idea that people’s minimum wage can’t keep up with the cost of living in terms of inflation, is in my view, something that the Fair Work Commission should bear in mind," he told RN Breakfast this morning.
By Jessica Riga
By Jessica Riga
By Jessica Riga
Climate change is being buried this election. We asked scientists to rate the major parties' policies
You'd think the government and opposition would be keen to focus on the number-one issue for voters this election campaign.
Yet if 2019 was the climate change election, 2022 is shaping up to be the don't-talk-about-climate-change election.
Despite climate change topping voters' (29 per cent) list of concerns, both the Labor Party and LNP have been avoiding it like the plague.
While that might suit them — given the perceived divisiveness of the issue among some of their prospective supporter bases — it leaves many climate-concerned voters with very little to go on.
So, we've asked some Australian climate scientists, all of them IPCC-contributing authors, to take a look at the climate policies of the Coalition, Labor and the Greens, and give you a breakdown of how each major party's climate policies stack up.
By Jessica Riga
'Surprised to hear it wasn't available': Your thoughts on adding dental to Medicare
I was actually really surprised to hear that Dental and Psychiatric care weren't available under Medicare. It's a bit disappointing. Personally, I pay for private health insurance and as a result, get these extras as a part of my plan. But I can see why it should be a part of Medicare. They're integral services to society.
-MT
Dental care needs to be free for all because it will encourage people to attend the dentist to prevent bad teeth, tooth decay and gum disease. Good dental habits can improve people quality of life. I have know people with toothaches to go to the doctors for pain relief and even end up in hospital needing advanced medical care all because the dentist appointment was too expensive. By providing free dental care to all there will be a significant impact on reducing the cases seen by doctors and hospitals.
-Dental Care for All
Dental should absolutely be included in Medicare. Giving people access to dental services to people who might not be able to afford dental services otherwise is sensible. If nothing else, it is going to mean that less people get into dire need and require emergency care when they put off their dental health care for years because they can’t afford it, and their overall health or quality of life declines to a point where the burden will then be put on our health care system when they end up in hospital.
-Al
Dental has to be included in Medicare. Dental health is a growing problem in Australia, especially because of all the junk food offered everywhere you look. There are many Australians that cannot afford dental checks and cavity fillings.
-Grace
By Jessica Riga
By Jessica Riga
'Love the idea': More of your thoughts on dental and Medicare
Love the idea of dental in Medicare. Never never understood how this was left out. Stands to logic and reason it is an important and vital part of the body yet for some insane reason people end up suffering especially those of little means.
-Claude
How can we say we have a complete healthcare system if mental, dental, pharmaceutical, and optical is all still completely out of pocket?
-Irina
By Jessica Riga
Some of your thoughts on basic dental being offered through Medicare
Dental absolutely should be a part of medicare. Untreated dental problems can go on to cause a whole bevy of other problems that just feed into the health system later when they're more costly because they weren't prevented in the first place.
Teeth are a fundamental part of a person's health and should be treated as such. Time to stop treating them like luxury bones.
-Ben
really important!! should’ve already been included
-m
By Jessica Riga
What are your thoughts on basic dental care being offered through Medicare?
I've just posted where the major parties stand on the issue in the previous post, but I'm keen to get your thoughts on the matter!
You can share your thoughts by hitting the blue button on the blog.
