The Unity Hall Hotel in Sydney was an obvious place for Anthony Albanese to launch his bid to become leader of Australia’s Labor party following a humiliating loss to the conservative government of Prime Minister Scott Morrison three years ago.
The pub in Albanese’s seat of Grayndler was the birthplace of the New South Wales branch of Labor in 1891 and offered symbolic value for a party in desperate need of a reset after being beaten despite leading in the polls for much of the campaign.
Now, Labor is once again favoured according to the polls ahead of a general election on May 21 as Albanese bids to become the first Labor prime minister since 2013.