CANBERRA voters appear to be bucking the national trend and expressing a preference for Julia Gillard over Kevin Rudd in tomorrow's battle for the Labor leadership.
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While opinion polls published yesterday show the Australian public overwhelming prefer former prime minister Mr Rudd over current Prime Minister Ms Gillard, in Canberra the position is somewhat reversed. The ACT's three members of the Labor federal caucus have thrown their support behind the incumbent and they have all reported strong interest from the local electorate. Member of Canberra Gai Brodtmann said she had been flooded with emails and phone calls since the leadership spill was announced last week.
Ms Brodtmann said across the board support was at 70 per cent for Ms Gillard and 30 per cent for Mr Rudd.
''There is strong support for the Prime Minister in this electorate and that trend has been reinforced today with the feedback I have had from constituents in Kambah,'' she said.
''I will be supporting Prime Minister Gillard in Monday's ballot.''
Member for Fraser Andrew Leigh has been inundated with feedback, including 1300 emails, although about half were group messages to all Labor MPs. He said the emails from Canberra voters though were highly in favour of Ms Gillard.
''There has been substantial interest, probably more on this than any other issue since I've been in Parliament,'' Dr Leigh said.
''It's a deeply personal issue, it's never easy. Kevin is one of three people in my lifetime who have brought Labor out of the wilderness and into government, so to not support him is a big deal.
''But I think the PM is tough and doing a good job and it's important we back her.''
Senator Kate Lundy said her BlackBerry was alive with community opinion and that Canberra voters have been unwavering in their support for Ms Gillard.
''The quality of feedback has been extraordinary. People aren't just saying who they support, they're providing thoughtful reflections on the situation and the universal sentiment is fix it, unite behind a leader and get on with the job,'' Senator Lundy said.
''I say bring on Monday, after which we'll have a clear path forward so we can demonstrate to the Australian public that the Labor Party and our reform agenda are worth supporting.''
