ROUGH CUT (NO REPORTER NARRATION)<br/> <br />STORY: After nearly five weeks of intense campaigning Australians are going to the polls on Saturday (September 7) to decide who will form the government for the next three years.<br/> <br />Opinion polls throughout the campaign point to a comfortable victory for the Liberal National Coalition, ending a tumultuous six years in power for the Australian Labor Party.<br/> <br />Prime Minister Kevin Rudd and the Coalition leader Tony Abbott have argued over how to tackle Australia's budget deficit and both have pledged to stop asylum seekers arriving by boat.<br/> <br />Rudd returned as prime minister after challenging Julia Gillard in June and the party initially enjoyed a boost in the polls, an improvement that has slipped away as the election neared.<br/> <br />Voting is compulsory for more than 14 million people over the age of 18.<br/> <br />Polls opened at 8am (2200GMT) and close at 6pm (0800GMT).
