Dutton is quite possibly the very worst candidate that the LNP could have chosen
You’re not wrong. But the LNP is stuck in a difficult place. At the last election, they lost most of their less-extreme MPs to teals and Greens. And with party leaders coming from who the MPs vote for, the extreme-right faction of the LNP had a strong majority for their candidate, the extreme of the extreme right, Dutton.
I think the less extreme LNP MPs also wanted to keep their powder dry, so to speak. They never expected Albanese to be quite as fucking terrible as he has been, and also to have to lead through global economic conditions quite as bad. Their plan was to wait out the 2025 election which couldn’t be won with Dutton, and try again in 2028, probably changing leaders around 2027 or so, so they had a fresh-faced less-extreme leader. So I suspect many in the LNP were surprised that Dutton was polling quite as well as he was late last year.
And then Trump started being even more extreme than many predicted, and got away with it thanks to the hyper-partisan SCOTUS, and Dutton’s extremeness and his avowed support for Trump. And the country realised how dangerous Dutton would be, and his polling has dropped as a result, saving Albanese, and putting the less-extreme wing of the LNP’s plans potentially back on track.
You’re not wrong. But the LNP is stuck in a difficult place. At the last election, they lost most of their less-extreme MPs to teals and Greens. And with party leaders coming from who the MPs vote for, the extreme-right faction of the LNP had a strong majority for their candidate, the extreme of the extreme right, Dutton.
I think the less extreme LNP MPs also wanted to keep their powder dry, so to speak. They never expected Albanese to be quite as fucking terrible as he has been, and also to have to lead through global economic conditions quite as bad. Their plan was to wait out the 2025 election which couldn’t be won with Dutton, and try again in 2028, probably changing leaders around 2027 or so, so they had a fresh-faced less-extreme leader. So I suspect many in the LNP were surprised that Dutton was polling quite as well as he was late last year.
And then Trump started being even more extreme than many predicted, and got away with it thanks to the hyper-partisan SCOTUS, and Dutton’s extremeness and his avowed support for Trump. And the country realised how dangerous Dutton would be, and his polling has dropped as a result, saving Albanese, and putting the less-extreme wing of the LNP’s plans potentially back on track.