With the comings and goings (more goings 
) of the conservative parties (Libs & Nats) I actually see them being in the wilderness for a number of years now.
The federal situation reminds me of what happened in Victoria when Kennett was turfed out and from that the Vic Libs have not recovered (Bobbie Doyle anyone) IMO
They must be really scratching their heads what they did wrong though.
Record low unemployment, surpluses, booming economy.
I'm a Labor voter through and through - campaigns are wasted on me because I'll never change. But if ever a Coalition government deserved to be returned, I'd say this one should have. Don't think they deserved the thumping they got.
And I'm absolutely gobsmacked I said that lol
I think it was a whole combination of things.
11 years in power is a long time so people are receptive to a new face. Rudd campaigned well to promote himself as a fairly "safe" as well as "new" opposition leader unlike timebomb Latham and poor old Beazley. Rudd also tapped into an electorate looking for more than just a beancounter. Howard misread the mood.
Probably a rule of thumb is don't tick off the public by promising something you then don't deliver (Keating with his L.A.W tax cuts and Howard with his record low interest rates) nor make major changes to something most people didn't see broken without asking them first (IR and workchoices). The Libs got carried away after gaining control in the Senate. Another rule of thumb is don't tell the public they've never had it so good when the cost of living and cost of buying a home has skyrocketed
.
The environment is back as a major election issue thanks to the drought and our less than half-filled dams. Howard first tried to dismiss it saying global warming/climate change was a myth but then at the last minute did a backflip. It just looked like vote-chasing in reaction to bad polls. Same goes for the "fairness test" with Workchoices. Just reactive desperate policy on the run.
Last but not least was the Government constantly stumbling from one scandal or gaff to another in their final term. Leadership and party internal friction, AWB, Iraq, interest rates, etc... The Libs couldn't generate any sustained positive momentum to crawl back ground on Labor. In the end they resorted to a fear and bribe campaign which couldn't con a cynical electorate a third time.
