Voters should expect to be treated to grandiose plans in coming weeks, despite talk of budget restraint. Each leader's formal campaign launch (coming, ironically, just days before the poll) is expected to present baubles to attract and persuade voters. However, each will preach economic sustainability as the key to the nation's future.

Treasurer Scott Morrison is presenting his first budget as more than a budget. Coming on the eve of the early election, it is being promoted as a plan for jobs and the economy. This mantra is expected to morph into the Coalition's election slogan.

For the Prime Minister, this campaign will demonstrate to Australians just how serious he is about his position. His critics say he is a do-nothing leader who has been content to allow the policies of his predecessor to continue. When Mr Turnbull took back the leadership of the Liberal Party, expectations surrounding him were high, probably unreasonably so, as often occurs when a party emerges from a troubled period and looks to a new leader for rescue.

When he overthrew Tony Abbott, Mr Turnbull was sharply critical of the Liberal Party's low standing in the polls. Never mind that this statement undermined the (bald-faced) lie that politicians tell when it suits them – that they take no notice of opinion polls. The party's support bounced significantly after the leadership change, but has eroded steadily since, particularly as Mr Shorten has unveiled policies.

Mr Turnbull does not seem to have been making an effort to impose his own style and personality on the government. Some Australians hoped his administration would become more liberal on asylum seeker policy and take a broader view of climate change and value the public service.

The question hanging over the Prime Minister, therefore, is whether he is planning to coast along, content to let current policies stand, rather than impose his stamp on the Coalition. Voters should expect to hear more of his vision at the Liberal Party's formal campaign launch. However, it would not be surprising if he waits until (and if) he wins the election, to then throw himself into recasting his government.

A solid victory would provide the mandate for significant policy and style change. It would become the springboard for him to go boldly forth, unafraid of the spectre of a leadership change, and prepared to become the prime minister he has always wanted to be. Indeed, it could be said he always felt the prime ministership was his destiny.

The election will be fought on fiscal responsibility as well as trustworthiness, familiar themes in Question Time as well as on the stump. Once again, the leaders will present themselves as the champion of voters, with particular interest groups getting more weight than others. Unfortunately, self-interest and preservation are usually the top priority. However, the nation's future is at stake, and must come first, in the long race to the polls.