New nationwide search intelligence data reveals the Liberal-National Coalition is facing a significant voter sentiment slump ahead of the 3 May federal election, with Peter Dutton’s leadership under mounting pressure.
The data, which was captured between November 2024 and February 2025 and released today by Captify, the world’s largest independent holder of onsite search data outside the walled gardens, shows a steep 10% drop in positive sentiment towards the Coalition in just four months, falling from 42.6% in late 2024 to 32.1% by February 2025.
Negative sentiment has surged even more sharply, climbing from 55.9% to 67.9% over the same period, according to Captify’s analysis of search behaviour between November 2024 and February 2025.
Dutton’s support dips in key states
Even in Queensland, Dutton’s home turf, approval for the Coalition has slid, dropping from 40.4% to 32.9%. The ACT presents an even tougher challenge for the Coalition, with positive sentiment at just 26.6%, the lowest nationally.
Western Australia appears to be the Coalition’s strongest remaining state, with positive sentiment at 37.3%, despite Labor’s recent victory in the March 8 WA election.
Meanwhile, sentiment for Labor remains steady nationwide, showing only a marginal 2% change. The WA election result helped boost Labor’s standing in the state, increasing positive sentiment from 41.6% to 46.9%. Support is strongest in the Northern Territory (48.5%), followed by WA, South Australia (46.84%), and Queensland (44.8%).
Millennials and young professionals (aged 29-44) showed higher-than-average support for Labor, with 45.1% expressing positive sentiment, outpacing the national average of 43.4% across all age brackets.
Search trends signal battleground priorities
Captify’s managing director for Australia, Jaclyn Hadida, said the findings provide a rare glimpse into unprompted voter sentiment as the election cycle heats up.
“Captify’s recent data shows the Coalition has its work cut out for it in the lead-up to the 3 May election,” Hadida said. “The next few weeks will be critical for both parties, as they aim to regain ground nationwide, while Prime Minister Anthony Albanese works to maintain his current position with Australians.”
She added: “Onsite search data is uniquely positioned to give real-time insights into what Australians are genuinely concerned about, without the filters of traditional polling or promoted content.”
According to Captify, key issues dominating voter interest include cost-of-living pressures, climate change, health care, and education, likely to shape the messaging strategies of both parties as election day nears.
Prime Minister Albanese officially announced the election date last Friday, just days after handing down his fourth Federal Budget.