So what does it all mean?
One thing to me is clear - while both sides ran a scare campaign focussing more on the perceived negativity of the other side's policies, I believe the libs got one thing fundamentally wrong. I can say this as an 'objective observer' who has taxation without representation - ie. i don't get to vote in aussie elections.
The liberals ran a very rational, logical, ROI focussed campaign concentrated on money and the economy but with limited emotional appeal. They seemed almost spock-like in character and out of touch with the australian electorate. Labour on the other hand stood for fresh leadership and fresh thinking, and managed to tap into the limbic brain appeal of positive emotions. They managed to get a sufficiently large proportion of the public to have the confidence to vote for things other than the economy.
For those of you who have heard me speak at conferences around australia this is totally on trend with the flipping of maslow's needs hierarchy. People in australia are not concerned with survival like they were in 2001, we are now focussed on more touchy feely aspects of life, and hence the liberals lost.
I am keen to hear your reflections on this. which messages did you pick up on during the elections and what does the results mean beyond the obvious shift in power?
Anders
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