JULIA GILLARD has three weeks in which to salvage her campaign, with the latest Herald/Nielsen poll showing Tony Abbott and the Coalition would be swept to power if the election were held today.

In a stunning reversal of fortunes for the Coalition after a disastrous week for the government, support for both the Prime Minister and Labor has plummeted; the Coalition now leads Labor on a two-party-preferred basis by 52 per cent to 48 per cent.

This represents a 6 percentage point two-party swing against the government since the last Herald poll a week ago, and a 4.7 point two-party swing against the government since the last election.

If the result were replicated uniformly in the election on August 21, the Coalition would pick up 28 seats; 11 more than it needs to form government in its own right.