MELBOURNE: It is not often, especially on Valentine’s Day, for a Prime Minister of a major country to blush on his official X handle. But that is what Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese did in between posts expressing solidarity with Ukraine and welcoming the peaceful conduct of elections in Indonesia.
Albanese said his live-in partner for three years Judie Haydon accepted his marriage proposal made on a balcony of his official residence, known as the Lodge, on Valentine’s Day after a romantic dinner at an Italian restaurant.
“It is such a joy to be able to share this news with people and it is wonderful I found a partner who I want to spend the rest of my life with. Last night was a very great occasion here at the Lodge. We couldn’t be more happy,” he posted on X along with a video of the couple walking hand in hand.
Smiling widely, his would-be wife, a financial services professional, said the couple was overwhelmed by congratulatory messages, even from people they did not know.
Asked by a reporter whether the wedding would be held before Australia’s next election, Albanese replied in the video, “We will now have those discussions between us, which I think people would understand, and sort out those details, but we just want to live in the moment at this point.” Albanese, 60, has an adult son with his first wife. They divorced after a 19-year marriage.