[Source: Reuters]

Australia’s government will prioritise dealing with the “dark shadow” of the U.S.-China trade war following its resounding reelection victory, Treasurer Jim Chalmers said, after a campaign that highlighted concerns over U.S. trade policy and the global economy.

Labor Party leader Anthony Albanese, Australia’s first prime minister to win a second consecutive term in two decades, promised in remarks on Sunday that he would run a disciplined and orderly government, stressing that Australians had voted for unity.

The centre-left Labor Party appeared likely to expand its majority in parliament to at least 85 seats from 77, the Australian Broadcasting Corp projected, after most polls had suggested it would struggle to keep its slim hold on the 150-seat lower house. More than two-thirds of votes have been tallied, with counting to resume on Monday.

Echoing an election in Canada less than a week earlier, Australia’s conservative opposition leader, Peter Dutton, lost his seat as voters, who initially focused on cost-of-living pressures, grew increasingly concerned over U.S. President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs and other policies.

Polls had shown Labor trailing the opposition conservative coalition for nine months until March, amid widespread angst about the government’s handling of inflation.

But the polls flipped when the conservatives unveiled a proposal to slash the federal workforce, which was compared to the Trump administration’s moves to cut back government agencies. A proposal to force federal workers back to the office five days a week was also criticised as unfair to women.

Trump’s April 2 tariff announcement added to voters’ unease as it sent shockwaves through global markets and raised concerns about the impact on their pension funds.

Former conservative member of parliament Keith Wolahan, who conceded his seat at the election, told the ABC his party had mis-read the public mood.

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