Victorian Liberals had been bracing for a leadership spill. Now voters have thrown John Pesutto a lifeline

While disgruntled MPs may still be able to gather the five votes needed to move a motion to spill the leadership on Tuesday, most seem to think anyone other than John Pesutto will struggle to get more than “single digits”. Photograph: Joel Carrett/AAP

There may have been only one person on Spring Street revelling in the latest polling data: John Pesutto.

Just days ago, the leader of the Victorian Liberal party was bracing for a potential leadership challenge. But the figures published in the Herald Sun on Thursday paint a hopeful picture for him and the Coalition, which has overtaken Labor and is in an election-winning position for the first time in seven years.