Dutton campaign not going as party wanted, but miracles can happen: Frydenberg
Josh Frydenberg has admitted the Coalition's campaign has not gone as the party had wanted, leaving the door open to his own political comeback as MPs ponder who the next opposition leader could be if Peter Dutton fails badly at Saturday's election.
The former treasurer, touted as the next party leader before being voted out of his own seat of Kooyong in 2022, suggested Dutton needed a Scott Morrison-style 'miracle' to avoid making Anthony Albanese only the second leader since John Howard to win successive elections.
'Ask any senior Liberal official and none would say that the campaign has unfolded as we would have wanted,' Frydenberg said at the Sorrento Writers Festival on Saturday.
'But after 2019, we still believe in miracles.'
Frydenberg answered a question about the Coalition's campaign performance to an audience of about 300 people who were barred from recording the event. Frydenberg confirmed the accuracy of his comments to this masthead.
The comments reflect the private views of Coalition MPs and party officials who have seen their primary vote collapse from 39 per cent in late February to 35 per cent this week, according to the Resolve Political Monitor, amid policy backflips and the negative impact of Donald Trump.
Frydenberg – who has previously flirted with running again in Kooyong – on Tuesday said he would not rule out a return to politics.
'I don't think ambition's a crime. I'm not rushing back. Life is good on the other side ... Never say never,' the Goldman Sachs executive said at a West Australian newspaper conference on Tuesday.
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