SYDNEY, Aug 14, 2010 (AFP) -Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard said next Saturday's vote would be one of the “closest, tightest races” in the country's history as she took the lead in neck-and-neck polls.
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| Julia Gillard |
Gillard, Australia's first female leader, gained four points to lead Tony Abbott's conservative Liberal/National coalition 53 percent to 47 percent heading into the campaign's crucial final week.
The latest Nielsen poll of 1,356 voters showed a three-point gain for flame-haired Gillard in the preferred prime minister stakes 52 percent to Abbott's 38 percent.
A separate Newspoll in the must-win states of Queensland and New South Wales (NSW), and Gillard's home state of Victoria, showed the prime minister was on track to scrape into government.
“Possible gains in Victoria would mean Labor could govern in its own right by the narrowest of margins,” said The Australian newspaper, where the Newspoll was published.
Critically, Gillard looked to hold onto the bellwether electorate of Eden-Monaro, just outside the capital Canberra, according to Newspoll.
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