In pictures: Australia goes to the polls
- Published
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Tony Abbott (C) will be Australia's next prime minister after his Liberal-National Coalition defeated the governing Labor party in a general election.
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Mr Abbott promised to return the economy to budget surplus, and stop boats carrying migrants from landing in Australia.
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Prime Minister Kevin Rudd conceded that he had lost and also announced to supporters he would step down as Labor leader.
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The election ended six years of government by Labor, which had survived as a minority administration since 2010.
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For many Australians, the choice was about who they hated the least rather than who they liked the most.
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Pundits said Australians were fed up with Labor infighting. The opposition had been consistently ahead in opinion polls.
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Voting is compulsory in Australia, and more than 14 million people were eligible to cast their ballots.
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Among the outsider candidates was Wikileaks founder Julian Assange, who was standing for a seat in the Senate. Polls suggested he had little chance of success.