Australia

The worm - that mysterious creature beloved of political junkies and hated by politicians that senses the mood of swinging voters - is becoming an endangered species in political debates.

Malcolm Turnbull and Bill Shorten will face off in their first formal debate of the election campaign in prime time on Sunday night.

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and Opposition Leader Bill Shorten have traded blows for the first time in the election campaign in a live debate in which the leaders were at odds on health, housing affordability, national debt and privatisation.

Greens leader Richard di Natale will push to be included in next year’s federal election debate alongside the Prime Minister and Opposition Leader.

A rundown of the main issues covered in the 2015 NSW leader's debate.

Tasmania's leaders have clashed in a pre-election debate over Prime Minister Tony Abbott's claim that too much Australian forest has been "locked up".

Western Australia's only leaders' debate ahead of the March 9 election was so unsurprising that the most controversial aspect was why Premier Colin Barnett did not look down the barrel of the camera. The Premier caused a Twitter frenzy on Tuesday night with many wondering why he was avoiding looking

Neither verbal fireworks or even a harsh word got a look-in at the televised pre-election debate between South Australia's premier and opposition leader, with jobs being a predictable issue.

South Australian Premier Jay Weatherill and Opposition Leader Steven Marshall will tonight go head-to-head in the first televised debate of the election campaign.

The Tasmanian Greens are accusing the two major parties of cutting them out of leaders' debates ahead of the state election on March 15.

South Australian Premier Jay Weatherill will go head to head with Opposition Leader Steven Marshall in a pre-election debate at the ABC's Collinswood studios.