On election eve, October 8, 2004, Prime Minister John Howard and Opposition Leader Mark Latham crossed paths in a radio studio and Latham aggressively gripped Howard’s hand in a less-than-friendly handshake.
The handshake may well have confirmed for many voters the doubts they had about Latham’s maturity and suitability for the prime ministership.
However, since the video only appeared on the Friday night before the election, you have to wonder how many people saw it. It’s not as if the footage had been shown repeatedly for weeks before polling day.
As time passes, many events develop a reputation as turning points. This may have been one but I doubt it.
