Australian PM Tony Abbott survives vote on leadership

Poll finds that 68 per cent of voters unhappy with him

CANBERRA, AUSTRALIA— Australia’s beleaguered Prime Minister Tony Abbott survived an internal government challenge to his leadership on Monday, despite a revolt by dozens of colleagues that leaves him politically damaged.

A meeting of lawmakers in the ruling conservative Liberal Party of Australia voted 61 to 39 to reject a motion that called for a ballot for party leader and deputy, party whip Philip Ruddock reported after the brief meeting. Abbott will need a stronger show of support from his colleagues to ward off potential future challenges if the government continues to endure sagging approval ratings in opinion polls.

The challenge showed that 39 of 102 Liberal lawmakers wanted a change at the helm, even though no one had officially announced their intention to stand against Abbott. It came halfway through Abbott’s first three-year term as prime minister.

The internal tussle came as an opinion poll published in the Australian newspaper on Monday showed that his popularity had reached its lowest point in his five years as party leader. The poll found that only 24 per cent of respondents were satisfied with his performance while 68 per cent were dissatisfied.

His conservative coalition government lagged behind the Labor opposition with 43 per cent of respondents favouring the government and 57 per cent supporting Labor. The poll was based on a nationwide, random telephone survey of 1,178 voters. It has a margin of error of three percentage points.

Abbott has come under increasing criticism from some members of his own party, which is conservative despite its name, over the government’s sagging approval ratings.