“change was very difficult,’ he says. ‘But I think the best way to try to protect the legacy and the accomplishments of the past three years was for Kevin Rudd to be our advocate. Once we got into the election cycle, Labor needed to be competitive for the health of Australian democracy and Kevin Rudd provided us with our best chance.’ Shorten says it was difficult to call Gillard and tell her she had lost his support. ‘I really wanted someone else to make the decision. It was really difficult. I somehow wished the issue would fix itself up. I wished that Julia would get more popular or that, you know, Kevin and Julia could work”