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Turnbull as Leader of the Opposition

12 Oct 2009

Q. Which statement do you think most accurately reflects Malcolm Turnbull’s time as leader of the Opposition?

More than half (58%) of people surveyed think that Turnbull has shown he hasn’t got the temperament, patience and judgement to be a leader of a major party.   42% think that despite all the criticism, Turnbull is capable of being the leader of the Opposition and given more time to develop his skills and experience, he could be a good leader of Australia.

Results reflected party lines – Labor voters were more likely to think that Turnbull hasn’t got the temperament to be a leader of a major party (78%), while Coalition voters were more likely to think Turnbull is capable of being leader, and given more time to develop his skills and experience, he could be a good leader (68%).  However, a significant number of Coalition voters think that Turnbull hasn’t got what it takes to be a leader of a major party (32%).

People aged 55 years and over were more likely to think that Turnbull is capable of being a good leader, he just needs more time (50%), while respondents aged 25 -34 were more likely to think Turnbull hasn’t got what it takes to be a leader of a major party (69%).

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