Queensland state election 2024: Hervey Bay, Maryborough votes
Maryborough’s three-term member Bruce Saunders has been defeated by LNP candidate John Barounis.
Fraser Coast
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After three terms and nine years as the member for Maryborough, Bruce Saunders has lost the seat to the LNP’s John Barounis.
Mr Saunders came to office in 2015, replacing LNP member Anne Maddern, who was elected under Campbell Newman’s government.
A determined state member, Mr Saunders pledged to bring jobs and manufacturing back to the Heritage City, which he said had been referred to as Detroit City because of the decline of its once booming manufacturing industry.
Under Mr Saunders the State Government pledged to build a new train manufacturing facility at Maryborough where trains for the 2032 Brisbane Olympic Games would be built.
Other businesses set up in the region, including a munitions factory owned by Rheinmetall.
But while the city found its feet economically, Maryborough fased its share of challenges. including two floods in the space of weeks in 2022 and two triple fatal car crashes, one caused by a 13-year-old behind the wheel of a stolen Mercedes and the other on the Bruce Highway at Walker St, an intersection the LNP pledged to make safer with a roundabout.
New LNP member John Barounis was joined on his campaign by Owen Davies, father of Kelsie Davies, who was killed in the crash involving the juvenile driver in April, 2023.
The LNP pushed for tougher measures to combat youth crime and it was a message that clearly resonated on the Fraser Coast, with a swing of 13 per cent against the incumbent member, wiping out his lead and giving the seat to the LNP.
Mr Saunders was contacted but declined to comment on Sunday.
Big upset on cards in Maryborough as Saunders falls behind
In one of the biggest upsets in regional Queensland, three-time Labor MP for Maryborough Bruce Saunders’ seat was on a knife’s edge late on Saturday night.
While Labor’s Adrian Tantari was expected to face a tough challenge from LNP candidate and former Fraser Coast councillor David Lee in Hervey Bay, it was the possible win for LNP candidate John Barounis in Maryborough that was drawing attention on Saturday night.
On the unofficial indicative result, Mr Barounis currently has a lead of 51.78 per cent with Mr Saunders on 48.22 per cent of the vote.
Mr Lee has addressed his crowd of 90-plus volunteers and supporters, telling them while he can’t make a victory speech as of 9.35pm, he’s hopeful of returning a marginal seat to a relatively safe seat after the 2020 upset.
The seat of Hervey Bay was claimed by Mr Tantari in 2020 in the wake of four-term MP Ted Sorensen’s retirement.
He said he was grateful for the support he’d received in what was a “marathon campaign”- in particular from his “long suffering” wife of 40 years Jillian, campaign manager Paula and his former Fraser Coast council colleague and campaign content creator Jade Wellings along with many volunteers who ensured “blue dominated the booths” and those who delivered more than 40,000 leaflets across Hervey Bay.
On the unofficial indicative result at 10pm Saturday, Mr Lee had 51.24 per cent of the vote and Mr Tantari 48.76 per cent of the vote.
It came after weeks and a busy day of campaigning for the candidates.
Mr Tantari cast his vote at Urangan Point State School before heading to Pialba Bowls Club to watch the results.
Mr Saunders cast his vote at St Paul’s Anglican Church hall.
Mr Lee was watching results come in at Hervey Bay Boat Club alongside wife Jillian and supporters, including Mr Sorensen, with momentum growing in the room after results were delayed early in the evening.
Possible upset on the cards in Maryborough
The unofficial indicative count is showing a narrow lead to both LNP candidates in Maryborough and Hervey Bay.
In Maryborough, John Barounis currently has 51.78 per cent of the vote in the two-candidate result, while incumbent Labor MP Bruce Saunders has 48.22 per cent of the vote after holding an early lead.
In Hervey Bay, LNP candidate David Lee is leading by the narrowest of margins with 50.36 per cent of the two-candidate vote, while incumbent Labor MP Adrian Tantari has 49.64 per cent of the vote.
Mr Lee is watching the results with supporters and his wife Gillian at Hervey Bay Boat Club.
He had been joined by Ted Sorensen, who formerly held the seat for four terms before retiring ahead of the 2020 election.
It comes after results from Hervey Bay were late to start flowing on Saturday night.
Responding to a query from the Chronicle, a spokeswoman from Electoral Commission Queensland said despite the lack of posted results, the count was being undertaken according to plan in Hervey Bay.
“Results are currently being checked and entered into the system and will be displaying on the results website shortly,” she said.
Earlier: Fraser Coast seats set to be split
The Fraser Coast state seats of Maryborough and Hervey Bay are set to be split between the two major parties, after an exit poll in Maryborough revealed a healthy lead for incumbent Labor MP Bruce Saunders.
The poll of 50 Maryborough voters as they exited St Paul’s Anglican Cathedral on Adelaide St, had Mr Saunders as their preferred member with 44 per cent of the vote.
LNP candidate John Barounis trailed Mr Saunders on 28 per cent, while Laura Granger Brown of the Greens polled 16 per cent and Taryn Gillard rounded out the voting with 12 per cent.
No votes had been cast for either independent candidate or Family First’s Kerry Petrus.
The main issues coming out of the area were homelessness, youth crime and cost of living.
George Blair, a man whose family has lived in Maryborough for more than half a century, was disappointed with the two major parties’ election campaigns, ultimately swaying his vote to the minor parties.
“The campaign was pretty poor for me, from both major parties,” he said.
“Compared to many years ago, it didn’t entice me and it didn’t interest me.
“I vote for the minor parties because they’ve got more of a concern around our human rights and our social needs.”
John Barounis, LNP candidate for Maryborough, was at St Paul’s Anglican Church in the morning with LNP Federal Member for Wide Bay Llew O’Brien, as was One Nation’s Taryn Gillard and Mr Saunders, who was photographed casting his vote.
In Hervey Bay, the scenes were much quieter compared to central Maryborough, as it is believed that more than 55 per cent of Hervey Bay residents voted before election day.
Both candidates for the major parties were still doing the rounds at polling booths with only hours left on the clock until the count begins.
Incumbent Hervey Bay Labor MP Adrian Tantari voted at Urangan Point State School, where he stated he was feeling “confident” with how the campaign was going.
“I’ve been around to a number of the polling booths today and people have been really supportive of the work I’ve done in my first term over the last four years,” he said.
In terms of what’s next, Mr Tantari mapped out his next steps in office.
“I’ve been able to secure a GP urgent care clinic from the federal government for Hervey Bay,” he said.
“Also, a satellite hospital will be delivered into the Fraser Coast, which is vitally important as well.”
In terms of housing, Mr Tantari confessed there was still work to be done in Hervey Bay, while also mentioning some good news for those in need of a home.
“I’ve got at least 32 affordable houses being built at Wondunna,” he said.
“I’ve got a 10-unit complex in Torquay plus a 40-bed youth foyer ready to be developed for Hervey Bay.
“We know we need to do more in the housing area.”
LNP candidate for Hervey Bay David Lee was spotted at Torquay State School about midday on the home stretch of a “gruelling campaign”.
“We’ve come into this as the underdog,” Mr Lee said.
“We’ve come into this campaign having to fight for every dollar we can possibly raise.
“The two biggest issues that have been raised with me during the campaign has been the need for youth crime reform and reform to our broken healthcare system.”
Mr Lee highlighted the need to plan for infrastructure in Hervey Bay as one of his other main issues that he would take to parliament with him.
“The facts are we’re a rapidly growing population and we have high rates of chronic disease,” he said.
“It’s really important to plan our infrastructure over the next 25 years.
“That’s things like an integrated transport strategy, plans for healthcare, plans for our education system.”
Voting booths are open until 6pm and can be found at these locations in Maryborough and Hervey Bay.
Surprise sign at business linked to ex-Labor staffer, councillor
The placement of a placard warning not to “risk” four more years of Labor and listing what the state opposition says are Labor’s failings got local tongues wagging when it emerged on the prominent fence of the Magnolia Village Caravan Park.
The park is owned by Ben Souvlis, the nephew of the late iconic businessman Con Souvlis and soon-to-be husband of Fraser Coast Councillor Sara Faraj who won Mr Lee’s Division 9 spot in the March election after he announced he would be running for state instead.
The councillor had previously worked with Mr Tantari both on his campaign and in his Hervey Bay electorate office early in his term but it’s understood she and the MP parted on bad terms.
The anti-Labor sign featuring Premier Steven Miles and Mr Tantari, which sits alongside Vote 1 David Lee corflutes, has also since been defaced and sprayed with obscenities including the word “c***head” by unknown vandals who also showed their anger towards the party with a penis drawing.
Ms Faraj publicly shared the happy news of engagement to Mr Souvlis, which took place during a recent Fiji holiday, on social media.
Asked if she no longer supported Labor and/or was supporting David Lee at this election, Ms Faraj told the Chronicle she remained bipartisan in her role as councillor and that the couple “haven’t publicly put our support behind anyone – we were just asked if we could have the sign on there”.
Fraser Coast heads to the polls
The stage is set for the Fraser Coast to be split between the two major parties with the LNP’s David Lee on the path to victory in Hervey Bay and Maryborough’s Labor MP Bruce Saunders tipped to be among the few red regional faces to keep his seat.
Team Lee has had to lead the LNP’s reset after an 11 per cent swing to Labor in 2020, the largest in the state, in the wake of a double whammy for the LNP – the retirement of four-term MP Ted Sorensen and support from an over 55s dominated population for the then Palaszczuk Government’s Covid response.
However, early indications are that the seat is likely to return to its blue status in line with state momentum and amid widespread frustration over the first-term MP’s perceived lack of presence in the public space prior to the election campaign.
Tantari, who had previously, notoriously dodged media requests and made few announcements in four years, did recently attend a tightly controlled candidate’s forum where he insisted he’d been working “methodically” to ensure the people of Hervey Bay benefited from lower unemployment rates and a strong economic recovery, pointing to major construction at the hospital, schools, roads and investment in more doctors, nurses and police along with new business grants.
Lee, a lawyer who already has a public profile thanks to his former role as a Fraser Coast councillor, has seized on the Tantari “phantom” hype with his campaign motto “visible, vocal, active” along with relentless social media clips pointing out that while many Bay sites are surrounded by Queensland Government branded construction fencing, no work has actually started (even this week, the only sign of activity on the Main St block earmarked for a new fire station was a fresh mow).
Sentiment towards the Hervey Bay MP however largely remains in stark contrast to that in the neighbouring Maryborough electorate where incumbent MP Saunders is still the favourite ahead of the LNP’s John Barounis,
While Saunders’ electorate technically takes in the outskirts of Hervey Bay and seaside towns to the west including Dundowran Beach, Craignish and Burrum Heads, his focus and largest fan base remains south of Susan River where he has been seen as the spearhead for the revival of Maryborough’s manufacturing industry.
Since the former ice-cream shop owner with strong union ties (the biggest bugbear with local conservatives) won the seat in 2015 he has earned a bullish reputation for advocacy in line with his “putting the Maryborough electorate first” mantra which Labor insiders say has often been at the expense of popularity within his own party.
Prior to his three-term stint, the LNP briefly held Maryborough via Newman-era MP Anne Madden who succeeded three-term independent MP Chris Foley, but the closest call Saunders had was from One Nation (which once had a sitting MP in Maryborough during the early Pauline Hanson years) in 2017 when former Fraser Coast councillor and Bauple dairy farmer James Hansen drew 30.36 per cent of the vote compared to Saunders’ 45.18 per cent.
His biggest test though is yet to come as, in the absence of an upset (he improved with 53.3 per cent of the vote in 2020 ahead of Fraser Coast councillor Denis Chapman for the LNP with 26.3 per cent) he will face his first term in opposition
Rolling results will be available here on Saturday evening and in the Courier Mail’s live election blog.
In the meantime, voters still to cast their ballot can do so at the following booths.
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