July 28’s five by-elections are being billed as a curtain raiser to the main event – the looming federal election.
However, much of the focus is currently on Bill Shorten and the degree to which his personal unpopularity is harming the Labor Party’s chance of winning government.
In normal circumstances, by-elections run against the government of the day. Even reasonably popular governments are often given a slap by the electorate when a sitting membe…