Julia Gillard will still reside at The Lodge. Gillard remains both Australia’s leader of the Labor Party and Prime Minister after easily surviving a challenge by her predecessor Kevin Rudd. Last Wednesday, Rudd resigned as Australia’s Foreign Minister while on an overseas trip in Washington amidst Labor’s falling poll numbers and public discontent against Gillard’s leadership amongst some Labor MPs. Gillard bested Rudd by greater than a two to one margin.

While Gillard has triumphed for the moment amongst Labor MPs and Senators, several polls indicate the Australian public prefers Rudd. if Labor’s poll numbers continue to stay in the doldrums in six months time then look for Rudd or his supporters to collapse Australia’s parliament and force early elections. Whether this comes to pass or not, look for Gillard to be decisively defeated by Tony Abbott and the Liberals in the next Australian federal election.

Here is what I wrote about the Gillard-Rudd feud just prior to Rudd’s resignation.