Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, seeking re-election in a tight race, is a pragmatic leader who pledged to end divisions but was set back by the failure of a referendum on Indigenous people and the headwinds of global inflation.

Australia's premier kicks off five-week election campaign in an election set to be dominated by a persistent cost of living and housing crisis. View on euronews

The government faces the unenviable prospect of being the first which fails to win a second term in almost 100 years.