Australia's Howard sets elections for November 24

CANBERRA, Oct 14 (Reuters) Australia will hold national elections on November 24, Prime Minister John Howard said today, as he fights bad opinion polls to seek fifth term in office.

Howard's conservative government has been in power 11 years, but is well behind the centre-left Labor Party, led by Kevin Rudd, in opinion polls going into the election campaign.

Reuters DKS VP0738