A new poll taken after Malcolm Turnbull overthrew Tony Abbott as prime minister shows the coalition ahead of Labor for the first time in 16 months.

Mr Turnbull has also opened a lead of more than two to one over Opposition Leader Bill Shorten, according to the national Galaxy poll, published by News Corp today.

The poll, taken after Monday night's coup, recorded a three-point bounce in the coalition's primary vote since May from 41 to 44 per cent, and showed it leading Labor on a two-party preferred basis by 51-49.

In the poll of 1224 voters, 51 percent rated Mr Turnbull as preferred prime minister compared to 20 percent for Mr Shorten.

In a further troubling sign for Mr Shorten's leadership, 27 percent of Labor voters said they preferred Mr Turnbull as prime minister.

New Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull.