Why the spotlight is on Peter Malinauskas ahead of the federal election

There is plenty about him personally that deserves such attention, but some of it is undoubtedly occurring because of the proximity of the forthcoming federal election.

The stunning victory in the state election by South Australian Labor over the Liberal government of Stephen Marshall would attract attention two months out from a federal election at any time.

Malinauskas himself is an additional factor because the federal election is increasingly about leadership; a contest between the qualities of the Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Opposition Leader Anthony Albanese.

The attention given to Malinauskas cuts several ways.

Neither Morrison nor Albanese would be entirely happy, but there is something to be gleaned from it for both federal leaders.

First, the freshness and gravitas of the new SA premier as the first post-COVID new political face makes federal politics look tired and insipid. Both federal leaders have had lengthy careers and it shows.

Morrison has deservedly attracted criticism for his failure to accept responsibility for government failures, for regularly shifting the blame to state governments, and for his personal exaggerations and flexibility with the truth.

Albanese has struggled to project himself with the electorate as a compelling opposition leader with the necessary qualities to be a great prime minister.

The leaders are now running equal in the polls, a credit to Albanese, but the broader context is a lack of great enthusiasm in the electorate for either of them.

Malinauskas has yet to prove himself and SA is the second smallest state, but the first signs are eye-catching for the national audience.

One observer quickly commented that he would strengthen national politics if given the chance.

He has been groomed within trade union ranks for high office from an early age after education at Mercedes College, a leading Catholic school, and Adelaide University (BCom).

His mentor is Senator Don Farrell, and he served seven years as secretary of the SA/NT branch of the powerful right-wing union, the Shop, Distributive and Allied Employees Association (SDA).

Now 41 years of age, two years older than NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet, he entered the SA Legislative Council in 2015, becoming a minister in the Weatherill Labor government.

At the 2018 state election, which saw Labor defeated, he was elected member for Croydon and immediately became Opposition Leader.

Malinauskas took time to get the measure of Marshall, widely regarded as a competent premier, but eventually won a resounding victory.

He earned kudos after the result was clear for describing Marshall as a 'class act'.

Secondly, the SA outcome is another boost for federal Labor, coming soon after strong results in the NSW state byelections.

The surprisingly emphatic victory, early on election night, gives impetus to Labor's federal campaign even if the lessons from state elections are always contested.

State elections are largely fought on state issues, but those issues often resonate across the nation.

Health policy in an age of COVID is one such issue.

READ MORE:

One aspect of Labor's win may have been that the Morrison government was on the nose.

The Prime Minister himself was largely conspicuous by his absence during the campaign, unwanted by Marshall or keeping clear of a possible defeat in the home-state of the French submarine industry.

Marshall even called on long-retired former prime minister, John Howard, for assistance in campaigning.

The link between state and federal election results in Australian political history is variable.

Sometimes voters distinguish between the two levels.

Labor does better at the state level in Queensland and Western Australia than at the federal level, for instance.

But on occasions, such as the early 1980s when the Hawke government was elected, Labor got on a roll at both levels simultaneously.

This could happen in 2022 as Labor now holds six of the eight state and territory governments.

Thirdly, if Labor's state victory can be largely reduced to the impact of Malinauskas alone then that is welcome news for Morrison.

He is working his hardest to frame the result in this way.

He went out of his way to find solace not only in the fact that 'Anthony Albanese is not Peter Malinauskas' but that Albanese was not Annastacia Palaszczuk, Queensland Premier, or Mark McGowan, Western Australian Premier.

Since then, Morrison has cosied up to McGowan during his visit to Perth, the same visit which came under criticism for delaying recovery efforts from the east-coast floods.

Trying to isolate Albanese from the well-regarded Labor Premiers is emerging as a Coalition campaign tactic.

Albanese on the other hand can find solace from the fact that the SA Labor victory was about much more than the leadership contest.

He will benefit from these wider issues.

The SA Liberal Party under Marshall descended into factional chaos and bitter preselection disputes.

It is the party not only of moderates like Marshall and Senator Simon Birmingham, but of extreme conservatives such as Senator Alex Antic.

It exemplifies the fragmentation and factional conflict across the federal party.

Several SA Liberal MPs left the party to sit as Independents, producing a large, six-member crossbench in a small legislative assembly (47 members).

This disarray has also been reflected in the federal parliament as MPs cross the floor.

While the Prime Minister continues to fixate on the Opposition Leader the federal election will hang on a much wider range of issues.

The SA victory was also based on a strong Labor campaign on key issues like health and infrastructure, issues which will resonate at the federal level.