Australia’s Labor Party secures absolute majority to govern outright

Sydney, Australia, May 31 (EFE).- Australia’s Labor Party has secured an absolute majority in the May 21 elections and will be able to govern alone, new Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said Tuesday.

“We asked Australians to vote for change, and they did that, and when you do change the government, you do change the country,” Albanese said in a televised press conference from Canberra.

“Australians have placed their trust in us and that brings with it an enormous responsibility, an enormous responsibility to deliver on the commitments that we made, the commitments for which we have a clear mandate as part of a majority Labor government,” he said.

Australian Electoral Commission indicates in its preliminary results that the center-left Labor Party has won 76 seats, gaining the absolute majority in the 151-member house.

The tally might go up by one more seat as counting continues on two closely contested constituencies.

Meanwhile, the right-wing Liberal-National coalition has secured 57 seats and may add another.

Albanese and three other ministers were sworn in two days after May 21 general elections to allow him and Foreign Minister Penny Wong to attend a summit of the leaders of the Quad alliance of Australia, India, Japan, and the United States.

Jim Chalmers and Kathy Gallagher were also sworn in as treasurer and minister of finance, respectively, and Richard Marles as employment minister and deputy prime minister.

The Labor Party is scheduled to unveil the rest of its cabinet on Tuesday.

The new ministers will be sworn in on Wednesday.

The parliament is scheduled to resume its sessions at the end of July.

Former Defense Minister Peter Dutton and former Water Resources Minister David Littleproud will serve as the new leaders of the opposition Liberal Party and National Party, respectively. EFE

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