ANTHONY Albanese has been declared the 31st Prime Minister of Australia.

With votes still being counted, it has been determined that the Australian Labor Party has a large enough lead that Mr Albanese will replace Scott Morrison as the Prime Minister.

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The son of a single parent who grew up in public housing, Mr Albanese has reached the pinnacle of his government career after 26 years in the parliament.

“It is an incredible honour,” Mr Albanese told reporters after leaving his house to head to speak at a party event.

Mr Albanese said he hoped his story would inspire a future generation of Australian leaders.

“My mother dreamt of a better life for me, and I hope that my journey in life inspires Australians to reach for the stars.

“I want Australia to continue to be a country that, no matter where you live, who you worship, who you love or what your last name is, places no restrictions on your journey in life,” he said.

Anthony Albanese entered politics in 1996 when he was elected as the Federal Member for Grayndler and in 2006 earned the title of Labor’s Shadow Minister for the Environment.

He eventually became Australia’s first Federal Infrastructure Minister and in 2013, under the new Rudd Labor Government, he was appointed Deputy Prime Minister and finally, unanimously in 2019, Anthony was elected as the new Leader of the Australian Labor Party.

Growing up, Albanese said that it wasn’t easy; being the first person in his family to finish school, let alone university.

“When I was about twelve years old, I helped to organise a rent strike that kept my mother’s public housing property from being sold off to developers – a first step towards the world of politics.”

He got involved in student politics and aged 22, he was elected president of Young Labor, the party’s youth wing, and worked as a research officer under the economic reformist government of Bob Hawke, Labor’s longest-serving Prime Minister.

In 2021, a car crash nearly killed Albanese and he says that it changed his life.

“It made me absolutely determined to make a contribution to the country,” he told the ABC.

In preparation for the campaign, he lost eighteen kilograms and underwent a major makeover.

“With my son Nathan and our dog Toto, I live twenty minutes down the road from mum’s old place.

“I love my community and I’m proud to represent them in our nation’s parliament.

“My vision is an Australia where everyone has the opportunity to work and enjoys the benefits of a job, but not just any job- good, well-paying jobs that are safe and secure,” he said.

World leaders congratulated Mr Albanese on his election.

“I look forward to working with you as we reap the rewards of our comprehensive Free Trade Agreement, the AUKUS partnership and the unmatched closeness between the British and Australian people,” Mr Boris Johnson, British Prime Minister said.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau described the two countries as “being close friends” and said he was looking forward to tackling global issues together.

“I’m looking forward to building on that with you, moving forward with progressive ideas, tackling climate change, and delivering results for people in both our countries,” he said.

Albanese’s election sees the first change in power since 2013, where the last Labor Prime Minister Kevin Rudd was defeated by Liberal Tony Abbott.

“My promise is to bring the nation together and promote unity and optimism, not fear and division.

“Thank you, Australia,” he said.

By Tara CAMPBELL