Mr Rudd says Labor went into the election campaign as the underdogs, but he's confident the party can win.
The Coalition is now enjoying a 52 percent two-party preferred rating ahead of the government's 48 percent.
Mr Rudd is in Hobart today, where he has announced that a re-elected Labor government would spend redevelop the Royal Hobart Hospital and promised $5 million to revamp the city's showgrounds.
A Herald-Nielsen poll of 1400 voters taken between Tuesday and Thursday shows Kevin Rudd is still the preferred prime minister, sitting on 50 percent, but the gap between him and his opponent has narrowed.
Mr Abbott's personal rating has improved by one percentage point, and he now enjoys a 42 percent approval rating. The number of voters uncommitted to either leader has risen, too, though - from 5 to 8 percent.
Mr Rudd, while more popular than Mr Abbott, is seen as less trustworthy, with Mr Abbott leading him 47 percent to 40 on that question.
And on the question of who would better manage the economy, Mr Abbott is the clear leader, with a score of 56 percent, 18 points ahead of his opponent - a seven-point widening since last month that comes after Labor announced a $33 billion write-down in expected revenue and employment figures softened.
Asylum Seekers
In July, the Government was 20 points behind the Coalition on the question of who can best deal with asylum seekers, but following Labor's recent policy changes the Government now trails the Opposition by only 8 points on this score.
Indigenous Affairs
Mr Abbott is in Arnhem Land at the Garma Festival, a key event on the Australian and indigenous cultural calendars, where he will today announce elements of his party's indigenous affairs policy.
Already he has announced that former ALP party president, Warren Mundine, would head a new indigenous advisory council that Mr Abbott has promised to establish in an effort to close the gap between indigenous and non-indigenous Australians in health, education and employment.
At a press conference this morning, deputy PM Anthony Albanese criticised Mr Abbott for his reluctance to appear on leading current affairs programs, and challenged him to expose himself and his policies to greater scrutiny.
Mr Abbott and Prime Minister Rudd will face each other tomorrow in their first debate of the campaign.
