Australian opposition elects new leader

Canberra, May 27 (IANS) Australia's Labor opposition on Monday chose Anthony Albanese as its new leader after the party suffered an upset in the nation's general election.Previous leader Bill Shorten resigned on May 18, immediately after conceding the election to incumbent Prime Minister Scott Morrison, the BBC reported.Albanese, a veteran politician, was elected unopposed as his successor.He vowed to rebuild Labor's vote, saying on Monday: "I am up for a hard job. I am up for hard work."I intend to do my best to work with the Australian people to ensure that we elect a Labor government next time."Last week, Albanese described the election loss as "devastating", after months of opinion polls had indicated that Labor was expected to win.The 56-year-old MP from Sydney has held senior positions in past Labor governments.He previously lost the last ballot for the Labor leadership to Shorten in 2013.The party's former deputy Tanya Plibersek, shadow treasurer Chris Bowen, and rising frontbencher Jim Chalmers were also eyed as potential opposition leaders, but all withdrew from the race last week.
--IANS ksk