Editing Joan Kirner (section)

==Premiership==
Later in 1988 Kirner was elected deputy leader of the party and became [[Deputy Premier of Victoria]]. When Cain resigned after a collapse in his political support in August 1990, Kirner was elected Labor leader and thus became Victoria's first female [[Premier of Victoria|Premier]]. By this time the Labor government was in deep crisis, with some of the state's financial institutions on the brink of insolvency, the budget deficit unsustainably high and growing and the Labor Party deeply divided on how to respond to the situation. The party hoped that the elevation of a popular woman as its new leader would improve its position, but Kirner never succeeded in gaining control of the crisis into which the state had plunged. The conservative-leaning Melbourne newspaper, the ''[[Herald Sun]],'' reacted unfavourably to a Premier from the Socialist Left, dubbing her "Mother Russia". She was lampooned alternatively as a sinister [[commissar]] and as a frumpy housewife in a polka-dot dress. She seemed unfazed by the ''Herald Sun'' and gradually won some respect, though she was unable to improve the government's standing significantly.

During 1991 and 1992 Kirner took several decisions to cut government spending and raise revenue to some extent, however her government failed to cut spending in many areas including education. Most of the Kirner Government attempts to cut spending were actively opposed by trade unions and some members of the government. The interest bill alone was $3.5&nbsp;billion per year,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.houserefinancing.com.au/news/1992/9/16/labor-and-coalition-at-odds-over-reduction-in-state-debt/|title=Labor And Coalition at Odds Over Reduction in State Debt|work=houserefinancing.com.au|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151023123319/http://www.houserefinancing.com.au/news/1992/9/16/labor-and-coalition-at-odds-over-reduction-in-state-debt/|archive-date=23 October 2015}}</ref> the government sold off trains and trams and leased them back. Another decision was the sale of the state-owned [[State Bank of Victoria]] to the [[Commonwealth Bank]] in 1991.<ref>Hugo Armstrong (1992), "The Tricontinental Affair", in [[Mark Considine]] and Brian Costar (eds.), ''Trials in Power. Cain, Kirner and Victoria 1982–1992'', Melbourne University Press, Carlton, Chapter 3<!-- ISSN/ISBN needed --></ref>

Kirner went into 1992 knowing she faced a statutory general election, one which opinion polls gave her virtually no chance of winning. She waited as long as she could, finally calling an [[1992 Victorian state election|election for October]]. It was obvious as soon as the writs were dropped that Labor would not win a fourth term. Although she remained personally more popular than the [[Liberal Party of Australia (Victorian Division)|Liberal]] [[Leader of the Opposition (Victoria)|Opposition Leader]], [[Jeff Kennett]], it was not nearly enough to overcome Victorians' growing anger at Labor. The Coalition's "Guilty Party" campaign did much to stoke this anger, targeting many Ministers in the Kirner Government and providing examples of concerns in their portfolios.

The campaign attracted controversy with ALP ads stating that if the Liberals won the election it would institute the same policies that were implemented in New Zealand by the then Fourth National Government.
New Zealand Prime Minister [[Jim Bolger]] responded in reference to the campaign, "You know, they say that the show’s never over until the fat lady sings. Well, I think it was her we heard warming up in the wings this week".

The "fat lady" was in reference to Kirner being overweight. Bolger refused to apologise for this remark citing that he himself was overweight and did not want to make "an international incident" out of it.
It did, however, anger women from Bolger's own [[New Zealand National Party|National Party]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/nz-leader-stands-by-his-fat-lady-insult-1539710.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220609/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/nz-leader-stands-by-his-fat-lady-insult-1539710.html |archive-date=9 June 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|title = NZ leader stands by his 'fat lady' insult|website = [[Independent.co.uk]]|date = 22 October 2011}}</ref>

The Coalition won the election in a landslide, scoring a 19-seat swing—the second-worst defeat that a sitting government has ever suffered in Victoria. The Liberals actually won enough seats that they could have governed in their own right. Kirner remained Opposition Leader for a short period before resigning. She retired from Parliament in 1994 and was succeeded by one of her former aides for the electorate of Williamstown, future premier [[Steve Bracks]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/vic-election-2014/guide/will/|title=Williamstown - Victorian Election 2014 |website=ABC News|access-date=2016-03-03}}</ref>

A portrait of Kirner painted by [[Adelaide]] artist [[Annette Bezor]] in 1994<ref name=daao>{{cite web|url=https://www.daao.org.au/bio/annette-bezor/|title=Annette Bezor|website=Design & Art Australia Online| access-date=2 April 2020}}</ref> hangs in Queen's Hall at Parliament House Victoria.