NSW Leaders Minns and Sloane See Poll Drop as Federal Parties Hurt State Vote

Recent polling shows the combined primary vote for NSW's two major parties, Labor and Liberal, has fallen to its lowest level since tracking began in November 2021, with almost half of respondents indicating they would support a minor party or independent if an election were held today. Both Premier Chris Minns and opposition leader Kellie Sloane attribute the decline to a “guilt‑by‑association” effect from their unpopular federal counterparts.

Minns enjoys a net likeability rating of +18 and Sloane +8, while federal Labor Prime Minister Anthony Albanese registers –15. The controversy intensified after federal Coalition Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price shared a misleading post about “importing” Indian migrants, prompting the NSW Labor government to condemn the targeting of Australian‑Indians. The Liberals, led by Sloane, have in turn accused Minns of linking state policies to broken federal promises on capital gains tax and infrastructure funding.