Peter Malinauskas made a splash – literally and figuratively – and set tongues wagging when he posed for a photograph shirtless in a swimming pool last month.
If anyone was unaware of who the South Australian Labor leader was at the time, it seemed everyone suddenly knew.
It was about five weeks out from the SA election and the opposition leader was at Adelaide Aquatic Centre to make an announcement to the media when the photographs were snapped.
The father-of-three, who has admitted going to the gym up to three times per week, appeared to be giving new meaning to the term “dad bod”.
He even posted his own photograph on Instagram, carrying his young daughter Eliza, with both of them grinning widely — and his strong arm fully flexed.
“Guns out, suns out,” one person commented.
“Hope those guns aren’t loaded,” another person said.
A third person wrote: “I didn’t know Peter had a set of guns on him.”
Premier Steven Marshall likened it to Russian President Vladimir Putinxjmtzyw’s famous shirtless photograph and suggested Mr Malinauskas had more time on his hands than he did to exercise.
“There’s no Putin-style campaigning from me, I can guarantee,” he told ABC radio.
While this election campaign should certainly not be based on anyone’s physical appearance, there is no doubt some people who are less interested in politics may be minded to cast their vote a certain way after viewing the pool images.
But of course, there is much more to Mr Malinauskas than his ripped body.
The 41-year-old was elected as the Member for Croydon at the 2018 state election and soon after became the SA Labor leader.
Before entering politics, Mr Malinauskas was the leader of the Shop, Distributive and Allied Employees Association.
Mr Malinauskas is married to Annabel and they have three young children — Sophie, Jack and Eliza.
In his spare time, Mr Malinauskas enjoys watching a Port Adelaide AFL game or playing for Adelaide Uni.
He describes himself as a “pretty average footy player” and a “weekend gardener”.
“My grandparents left war-torn Europe in the 40s in search of a better life for our family,” he said in a campaign video.
“My parents worked tirelessly to teach me the value of hard work.
“Now, I have a young family of my own and I want to provide a better future for them too.”
State Labor has been leading the two-party vote in the published polls, while Mr Malinauskas is also ahead of Mr Marshall as the preferred Premier.
Mr Malinauskas has run a presidential style campaign and appeared to defeat his opponent in the last debate before voters head to the polls.
Time will tell whether Labor, Mr Malinauskas and his “guns” will be victorious at the election.
SOME OF SA LABOR’S KEY POLICIES:
- $20bn pipeline of renewable energy projects through the hydrogen jobs plan;
- 350 extra ambulance officers, 300 more nurses and 100 additional doctors;
- 300 extra hospital beds and 10 major hospital upgrades;
- Five new ambulance stations and a new ambulance headquarters; and
- Reforming early childhood education and care, including introducing three-year-old preschool programs.
