Experts say Albanese and Dutton’s election pledges on infrastructure and health in the far north will struggle to sway votes
Leichhardt candidates put infrastructure and health at the forefront of their election pledges but political analysts say it won’t be enough to sway the undecided voter.
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Leichhardt candidates put infrastructure and health at the forefront of their election pledges, with Labor’s 11 election commitments outspending the LNP’s 15, but political analysts say it won’t be enough to sway the undecided voter.
Australian Labor Party leader Anthony Albanese and Liberal National Party leader Peter Dutton first appeared in the region on April 9 and April 26, respectively.
Leichhardt is held by the LNP by a 3.4 per cent margin, but with the imminent retirement of longstanding MP Warren Entsch the seat has become one of the most marginal in Australia.
It is one of Australia’s largest electorates — stretching from Cairns to the top of Cape York and the Torres Strait.
Central Queensland University senior history and politics lecturer Joe Collins said both sides of politics recognised the need to improve infrastructure and healthcare in Far North Queensland.
“There have been long standing concerns with how damage to these roads and infrastructure, particularly the Bruce Highway, cuts off access to various communities in Leichhardt,” Dr Collins said.
“The efficacy of urgent care clinics and a lack of trained GPs are also ongoing issues.
“The character of these pledges really speaks to the chronic underfunding and neglect of public goods in regional Queensland.”
Dr Collins said post-election analysis from 2016 and 2019 had pushed leaders to adopt a “small target” approach to policy in regional Queensland and beyond.
“It’s fairly uncontroversial to say there’s a conspicuous absence of big hitting policy promises, this kind of small target approach seems to be what’s prevailing in this campaign,” Dr Collins said.
“I think the 2019 and 2016 federal election campaigns were cautionary tales for governments who put forward big policy agendas, particularly in the regional seats in Queensland.
“The reason (former ALP leader) Bill Shorten lost in 2019 was because of his attempts to reform things like capital gains tax and negative gearing.
“Post 2019 it became very clear that regional Queensland seats are very important when it comes to federal elections, and in post-election analysis Shorten’s reforms did not perform well in these seats.
“The major parties need to think a lot more seriously about people in regional Queensland, the conditions in which they live and how those conditions translate to votes.”
Griffith University politics and journalism associate professor Paul Williams said the “small target” policy announcements in Leichhardt would struggle to sway votes.
“Infrastructure promises are rarely a tipping point, but it can make a difference if the electorate is looking marginal — which Leichhardt is,” Dr Williams said.
“Building a bridge over the Barron River is unlikely to be a top tier issue for a lot of Leichhardt voters. For some it would, but it’s unlikely to be a critical mass.
“Although, generally speaking, infrastructure is more important to the regional voter than it is to the urban voter.
“Queensland politics is the politics of things, not the politics of ideas, in regional Queensland politicians have to promise material construction.
“We also know that health is a tier one issue for Queenslanders, with things like hospital ramping rates becoming very important in the state election.”
Dr Williams said voters would be moved by party and leader perceptions, rather than individual policies.
“This election is going to be a referendum on leadership, a referendum on party image,” Dr Williams said.
“The Labor Party is looking united and strong, while the Coalition is perceived to be running a ham-fisted campaign and we’re seeing that out of the exit polls.”
Dr Williams said the cautious approach to policy could deliver more votes to minor parties in Far North Queensland
“I’m sure we will see an uptick higher than in 2022 in votes for Pauline Hanson’s One Nation, for the Trumpet of Patriots party and certainly Katter’s Australia Party,” Dr Williams said.
“People feel that both major parties have let them down, neither Albanese nor Dutton are especially popular people, they’re not rock star politicians.
“So in regional Queensland, where the cost of living is higher than in the city, that frustration could fuel third-party votes.”
The election will be held on Saturday, May 3.
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Originally published as Experts say Albanese and Dutton’s election pledges on infrastructure and health in the far north will struggle to sway votes
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