02-05-2025
Australian Federal election 2025 live updates: Polling boots open as Dutton warns of Albanese ‘disaster'
Scroll down for the latest news and updates.
For many Aussies, Federal election day just isn't complete without indulging in a democracy sausage.
The classic bun, topped with a beef sausage, tomato sauce, mustard and onions is one of those simple 'straya' pleasures that just can't be beat.
Today, primary schools and halls across the country will be packed with campaigners, pollies and voters exercising their democratic rights, as Australia decides who will be the next Prime Minister of our great country.
But the aroma of sizzling sausages and onions won't fill the air at every polling place, so to save you from disappointment, we thought we'd point you in the right direction.
Here's everything you need to know about the democracy sausage and where to get one.
Media shadowing Opposition Leader Peter Dutton have criss-crossed the country during the 2025 Federal Election campaign.
While travelling to all jurisdictions except Canberra across 36 days, they have been on 39 flights across more than 63,000 kilometres.
That's about equal to 1.5 laps around Earth's equator.
The Liberal leader has campaigned in Melbourne this morning and is expected to have his election night event in Brisbane tonight.
It comes after a busy week for the leader, who has campaigned in 21 seats since Sunday.
After a 19-hour day yesterday across Adelaide, Perth and Victoria, travelling media have had an early start to follow his campaign with just hours to go until polling closes.
Taking to social media, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Peter Dutton have made their case for why you should vote for them.
Peter Dutton has had a brief chat with reporters trailing his campaign after cafe catch-ups with his Melbourne Liberal candidates, Benson Saulo in Macnamara and Tim Wilson in Goldstein.
Asked if he was 'ready to run the country?', Mr Dutton said 'We're ready to go!'
'This is an opportunity to get our country back on track.'
Mr Dutton went on to explain why he should become Australia's 32nd Prime Minister.
'Firstly, because of our positive plan and our desire to get Australia back on track,' Mr Dutton said.
'And Australia just can't afford three more years of this bad government. A Labor-Greens Government would be a disaster.'
Polling stations have now opened along the East Coast for Federal election day.
Residents in Victoria, New South Wales, Queensland, Tasmania and the ACT can now commence voting, with South Australia and the Northern Territory opening next.
Polling stations close at 6PM in each State and Territory.
Perhaps trying to suggest he is more a man of the people, Opposition Leader Peter Dutton fuelled up at a Melbourne cafe of election day.
Taking to the MCG, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has posed for photos on election day.
With Victoria poised to potentially decide the fate of the Federal election, could his heavy heady Melbourne photo opp win over footy loving voters?
After five weeks of campaigning, billions of dollars in promises and countless marginal-seat visits by leaders, Australians head to the polls to decide the nation's political future.
Millions of voters will cast a ballot on Saturday, as challenger Peter Dutton and his coalition camp face a battle pollsters again say is too great for the opposition.
A final YouGov poll released on Saturday puts Labor in the box seat to form majority government.
It will make Anthony Albanese the first prime minister since 2004 to win back-to-back elections.
Labor is ahead 52.2 per cent to 47.8 per cent on a two-party preferred basis, the poll provided to AAP shows.
The survey of more than 3000 people means Labor would increase its vote from the 2022 election by 0.07 per cent.
The coalition would receive 31.4 per cent of the primary vote, followed by Labor on 31.1 per cent, with the Greens on 14.6 per cent.
One Nation would get 8.5 per cent of the primary vote, with 6.7 per cent voting for an independent, while 2.5 per cent would opt for Clive Palmer's Trumpet of Patriots party.
Read the full story.
Peter Dutton has started a Melbourne blitz this morning, pulling into a cafe in Goldstein after a Macnamara pit stop.
The Opposition Leader grabbed a tea with his local candidate Tim Wilson and supporters at Little Sister cafe along Bay Street in Brighton.
The pair talked about issues that voters have raised throughout the campaign at pre-polling stations, including crime and businesses going bust.
'I think you can reduce crime in the suburbs, if you take it seriously,' he said.
Mr Dutton is now up to 21 seats in the last week after announcing an ambitious goal to reach up to 28 since last Sunday.
Anthony Albanese listened to Peter Dutton's interview play out on Sunrise before he was on live.
He joked about the Opposition Leader's use of footy analogies, saying he was about to be trumped when the shots of the MCG came up.
The PM leaned heavily into the footy analogies in his interview with Sunrise.
Every measure of the government's achievements was distilled into how many MCGs worth of people had benefited.
He went further in a subsequent interview: 'It's no good kicking goals after the siren. You've got to do it when the game's on,' Mr Albanese said.
'And we were ready. We were ready … when that siren sounded from the beginning of the game, and worked, played hard for the last five weeks but we've also gone hard for the last three years and we'll go hard for the next three.'
He revealed he will spend the evening watching the results come in with partner Jodie Haydon, son Nathan, dog Toto and key members of staff before heading to a Labor function 'once the result is known'.
He also talked about a secret weapon in his seat of Grayndler: the 200-strong 'puppies for Albo' bandanna-wearing dogs in his local neighbourhood.
