Labor’s Anthony Albanese has defied the so-called “incumbency curse” to be re-elected Australia’s prime minister in a landslide.

Official vote counting won’t conclude for days, but Albanese’s centre-left government is set to dramatically increase its majority after the Liberal-National coalition suffered a thumping defeat nationwide.

“Today, the Australian people have voted for Australian values: for fairness, aspiration and opportunity for all; for the strength to show courage in adversity and kindness to those in need,” Albanese said.

Coalition leader Peter Dutton – who lost his own seat of 24 years – said he accepted “full responsibility” for his party’s loss and apologised to his MPs.

Labor has seen swings towards them in almost every area across the country – a rare feat for a second-term government in Australia – and Albanese becomes the first prime minister to win back-to-back elections in over 20 years.

The party’s success has also tempered a trend of voters abandoning the two major parties, which was the big story of the last election in 2022.

Labor is on track to finish with 86 seats, the Coalition with 39, and the Greens Party with one or two, according to projections by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC). Other minor parties and independent are ahead in 10 seats.

It’s a remarkable turnaround from the start of the year, when polling put Albanese’s popularity at record lows after three years of global economic pain, tense national debate, and growing government dissatisfaction.