Labor Party wins Australia election

(November, 24, Sydney, Australia, Sri Lanka Guardian) Labor Party leader Kevin Rudd swept to power in Australian elections today, ending an 11-year conservative era and promising major changes to policies on global warming and the Iraq war.

The win brought a humiliating end to the career of outgoing Prime Minister John Howard of the Liberal Party, who became Australia's second-longest serving leader -- and who had appeared almost unassailable as little as a year ago.

In a nationally televised concession speech, Howard announced he had phoned Rudd to congratulate him on "a very emphatic victory."

"I accept full responsibility for the Liberal Party campaign, and I therefore accept full responsibility for the coalition's defeat in this election campaign," Howard said.

Howard faced further potential humiliation. The voting results in his own district were on a knife edge, and he was in real danger of becoming only the second sitting prime minister in 106 years of federal government to lose his seat in Parliament.

Official figures from the Australian Electoral Commission showed Labor far in front with more than 60% of the ballots counted. Using those figures, an Australian Broadcasting Corp. analysis showed that Labor would get at least 81 places in the 150-seat lower house of Parliament -- a clear majority.

"On the numbers we've seen tonight, Labor is going to form a government," deputy Labor leader Julia Gillard said on Australia Broadcasting Corp. television.

ABC radio reported that Howard aides said the prime minister had phoned Rudd to concede defeat.

Rudd was expected to formally claim victory later today.

The change in government from Howard's center-right Liberal-National Party coalition to the center-left Labor Party also marks a generational shift for Australia.

Rudd, a 50-year-old former diplomat who speaks fluent Chinese, had urged voters to support him because he said Howard was out of touch with modern Australia and ill-equipped to deal with new-age issues such as climate change.

Howard campaigned on his economic management, arguing that his government was mostly responsible for 17 years of unbroken growth, fueled by China's and India's hunger for Australian coal and other minerals, and that Rudd could not be trusted to maintain prosperous times.

A new government is unlikely to mean a massive change in Australia's foreign relations, including with the United States -- its most important security partner -- or with Asia, which is increasingly important for the economy. (Agencies)