MPs in marginal seats are always nervous around election time.
But for several government MPs in marginal seats the most recent poll will be tougher than normal with three coalition seats deemed notionally Labor as a result of redistributions.
Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and the Liberal National Party coalition would lose government if there is a 4 per cent swing against them.
Electoral redistributions have made some marginal government seats more difficult.
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The Sydney seat of Barton (on the banks of Botany Bay) held by Liberal Nickolas Varvaris is the most impacted. On paper Labor holds it with a 5.4 per cent margin.
Mr Varvaris is considering his future and has not yet made a commitment to run in 2016.
The New South Wales Liberal-held seats of Dobell (Wyong and The Entrance) and Paterson (Williamtown and Raymond Terrace) are also now deemed notionally Labor seats by smaller margins.
Karen McNamara in Dobell will have to fight to retain her seat (currently 0.1 per cent to Labor) and Paterson, held by Bob Baldwin, will also face a challenge. Paterson is now estimated to be a Labor seat with a 1.1 per cent margin.
Most party insiders believe the government can win the election this year but concerns have been growing about delays in releasing policies.
The Labor opposition has been rolling out policies for the last 12 months and Opposition Leader Bill Shorten has begun to narrow the gap between himself and Mr Turnbull.
This is Mr Turnbull's election campaign, after overthrowing Tony Abbott in September it is up to him to hold on to government.
His early popularity was helpful for him, but as polls narrow voters are rightly asking, 'where are the government's key policies and when will they be released?'
Former Victorian Liberal Premier Jeff Kennett told SBS News he was worried that the boost in goodwill Mr Turnbull has enjoyed will be wasted.
“I am as frustrated as hell” Mr Kennett said.
“Like a lot of us I think on the conservative side of politics. But having said that there is still time.”
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“Among the ranks of our ministers the are some very talented people, be it Sussan Ley (Health Minister), Josh Frydenberg (Resources Minister), Mathias Cormann (Finance Minister) over in the west.
"There are some very well qualified individuals. What is necessary from the top I think is for the narrative to be developed as to what we are all working towards.”
“At the moment it is a bit of a mess.”
Nick Cater, executive director of Liberal Party’s think tank, the Menzies Research Centre, said he expected Mr Turnbull to campaign well.
"I think the timescales are very difficult for the government," he told SBS News.
"It was always going to be that way because Malcolm Turnbull became leader with a year to go before the election."
“This is the first election he will face as leader. People warm to him but he is going to I think need to sharpen his message and come into the campaign with a very clear reason why he should be elected."
Mr Turnbull has started visiting marginal seats and continues to promote his innovation agenda.
In recent weeks he has visited Dobell and Robertson on the central coast north of Sydney and Hindmarsh in Adelaide.
Liberal Matt Williams won Hindmarsh from Labor’s Steve Georganas at the last election with a swing of nearly 8 per cent.
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This time around Labor is throwing everything at Hindmarsh in a bid to win it back.
Mr Georganas is standing again and leader Mr Shorten has become a semi-regular visitor to South Australia.
Meanwhile, Mr Hindmarsh sits on a knife edge with a margin of 1.9 per cent.
The newly released electoral pendulum drawn up by political analyst Malcolm Mackerras lists Barton, Paterson and Dobell as potential Labor seats.
He lists the most marginal government held seats as Petrie (Queensland), Capricornia (Queensland) Lyons (Tasmania), Solomon (Nothern Territory) and Hindmarsh (South Australia).
In 2013 the coalition won 17 Labor seats to take office.
Mr Cater says it will be a tough election and closer than people think. He says the Turnbull team will need to get their policies out there because time is tight.
“They have got to not just win the election but win the argument,” he said.
“Clearly they are focused on the budget and getting the budget back into order. But I think what you will find them doing is to develop that story to not just a story about the numbers but about growing the economy as the best way to give people the incentive to invest and work hard.
“That is what they have got to do I think - build the story about growth in the economy to give us some future anticipation that things are going to get better.”
Mr Turnbull is showing signs of developing that economic narrative.
“Our annual growth is faster than any of the major economies in the G7 and well above the OECD average” he told an Adelaide business audience recently.
“We are making a transition from a mining boom-led economy to one with more export orientated diverse growth.
“When it comes to the big economic decision we will get them right.”
Across all parties many MPs are retiring this year.
The latest announcement that Liberal Teresa Gambaro is retiring from her marginal inner city seat of Brisbane is a blow for the government.
A retiring member usually makes seats more difficult to hold.
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