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Published online by Cambridge University Press: 01 January 2026
The year 2014 was a difficult one for the government and citizens in Australian federal politics. Although the Liberal-National coalition had won a landslide election late in 2013, the honeymoon period was short, with public support for both the government and the Prime Minister plummeting during 2014. The government’s policy direction was wellreceived initially, but the economic outlook was grim and the government’s austere budget proposals were thwarted by a hostile Senate and read by voters to be inherently unfair. As a result, by the end of 2014, Prime Minister Abbott was facing low ratings in the polls and increasing discontent among his party colleagues.