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STORY: Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison's government could lose May's federal election, according to polls released on Monday (April 11).

But as the six-week campaign kicks off, polls also showed Morrison consolidating his position as the country's preferred leader over his opposition rival Anthony Albanese.

The cost of living crisis and climate change are set to be the dominant themes over the campaign, which is shaping up to be a tight race.

A Newspoll survey conducted for The Australian newspaper showed Morrison gaining a point to 44%, while opposition leader Anthony Albanese fell 3 points to 39%, the largest lead the prime minister has held over his rival since February.

Yet, polls are also predicting Morrison’s conservative Liberal-National Party coalition will lose their one seat majority in the lower house to Albanese centre-left Labor party.

A survey conducted by the Sydney Morning Herald newspaper predicts the ruling coalition could lose at least 14 seats, including some previously deemed safe states in resource-rich Queensland and Western Australia.

Morrison, who has been in power for nine years, kicked off the election campaign from the marginal seat of Gilmore in New South Wales.

“Elections are about choice. It's a choice between the strong economic management and the strong financial management that has ensured that Australia has been able to come through this pandemic with lower unemployment, more people obviously in jobs, an economy that's growing faster than the advanced economies of the world, coming out of this pandemic and ensuring that we can continue to guarantee the record investments that we're making in essential services."

Morrison, who has led the country throughout the coronavirus pandemic, has been touting his government's handling of the economy and its fast rebound, helped by the lifting of most COVID-19 restrictions.