Forty-eight hours into the election campaign, Scott Morrison’s job seemed impossible.
He had just five weeks to overturn a deficit in the polls that had lasted years. He desperately needed clear air to talk about his message.
And instead, the news was dominated by his side’s first major gaffe of the campaign.
Peter Dutton’s claim that Ali France, the Opposition’s candidate in his seat Dickson, had used her disability as an “excuse” not to move to the electorate had derailed the opening days.
Labor labelled Mr Dutton a “mean, despicable thug”.
At that point, Bill Shorten’s victory seemed even more inevitable than before.
But gradually, the balance of the campaign has shifted — enough that we can say Mr Morrison won the first week.
Both leaders have been relaxed and jovial in their interactions with voters, and both have broadly been well received.
Mr Morrison caused chaos in the Sydney suburb of Strathfield by doing a street walk and going into restaurants, press pack in tow, to greet diners and help out in the kitchen. He also spoke to Queenslanders at Redcliffe Markets and dropped into a pub for musical bingo in Tasmania.
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Mr Shorten spoke to store owners at Sydney Markets and strolled through a Westfield shopping centre in Adelaide.
You can’t accuse either man of hiding from the Australian people.
It must be said, however, that Mr Morrison and Mr Shorten have hardly strayed into hostile territory either.
The Prime Minister has visited small businesses and held photo opps on road sides where there is little opportunity to bump into a disgruntled voter.
A retiree forum held in the Victorian electorate of Corangamite raised suspicions after journalists struggled to find any attendees who were not Liberal Party members — although organisers insist posters were put up around the electorate advertising the event.
Meanwhile Mr Shorten has spent much of his time at hospitals and work sites, which are full of traditional Labor voters.
But there is a key difference between the two leaders — their approach to press conferences with the travelling media packs.
Ultimately, this week has shown Mr Morrison has had politically smarter tactics when it comes to media management.
He keeps his press conferences short and journalists battle to get their questions heard, yelling over each other to catch the PM’s attention. It’s all over too quickly, and it’s difficult to ask follow-up questions.
On Thursday, the morning a new report was released that suggested the Coalition’s tax cuts would give high income earners back $77 billion over 10 years, Mr Morrison held a 30-minute press conference and about half the time was spent on speeches and local questions. National media were given about 15 minutes to ask their questions.
Mr Morrison is also well schooled in the art of deflection, meaning journalists don’t always get a straight answer.
The PM also has a good grasp of the detail of his policies, which means he is not falling back on his ministers to answer questions and he has a knack for staying on message.
It’s telling that the biggest controversies to erupt this week on the Coalition side have not been caused by Mr Morrison but instead by his colleagues: Mr Dutton; Chisholm candidate Gladys Liu, who went to ground after audio of her comments about LGBTI people emerged; and Queensland MP George Christensen who is under pressure over his travel to the Philippines.
Mr Shorten, by contrast, is holding noticeably long press conferences, giving reporters plenty of time to grill him on the issues of the day. And that has allowed them to back him into a corner more than once.
The trouble started on Tuesday, when Mr Shorten refused to give a clear response about the impact his renewable energy target would have on the economy. It looked bad.
Channel 10 journalist Jonathan Lea repeatedly pressed Mr Shorten to answer properly, and the Labor leader responded by trying to move on to another questioner.
The next day Mr Shorten visited a hospital in Perth, and held another press conference. You might have expected him to keep it short and avoid a second confrontation. Instead, he stayed and answered reporters’ questions for 45 minutes.
Other questions have tripped Mr Shorten up as well. At one point he falsely claimed he had no plans to increase taxes on superannuation, seemingly forgetting or ignoring a suite of Labor policies that will raise $30 billion in revenue.
Mr Shorten later said he had misunderstood the question, and disputed the characterisation of those policies as tax increases.
His approach to press conferences reflects Labor’s strategy more generally. The Opposition has decided to spurn the “small target” strategy that has worked so well for opposition parties in the past.
Tony Abbott, for example, used it to great effect in 2010 and 2013.
Mr Shorten has announced bold policies, such as the 45 per cent renewable energy target, which has caused him such trouble, well ahead of the election. He has stood behind Labor’s controversial negative gearing and capital gains policies since 2016, despite the downturn in Australia’s housing market.
Voters always claim to hate negative politics, so they might appreciate Labor’s candour — even if many of its policies are still lacking in detail.
The flip side is there is plenty for Mr Morrison to attack. Just ask John Hewson what can happen when you present too big and too easy a target.
This is the dilemma Australia’s politicians face — avoid the media and be accused of hiding, or face them and risk a moment that will look terrible on the six o’clock news?
Mr Shorten deserves credit for spending long periods in front of the cameras and exposing himself to tough questions. It’s the sort of thing most voters wish their politicians would do more often.
On the other hand, these long interrogations carry significant danger.
Both leaders now have the Easter weekend to tone down their schedules, digest the first week of campaigning and determine whether they need to reset.
It will be fascinating to see whether their tactics change.
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