10 seats that count: The ultra-marginal seat of Mundingburra
Labor is yet to announce a candidate for one of the state’s most marginal seats while another party’s candidate doesn’t even live there. Here are the issues that count in the Townsville seat of Mundingburra.
Electorates
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JOB creation and youth crime look set to dominate the polls in one of the state’s most marginal seats where Labor doesn’t yet have a candidate and where two other candidates don’t even live there.
Mundingburra will turn into a key battleground next month as the major parties, and minors, fight to sandbag the Townsville seat ahead of October 31.
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But Labor is yet to announce its candidate after Palaszczuk Government Minister Coralee O’Rourke pulled the pin on her five-year political career last weekend, saying she needed to focus on her health.
The LNP, which trailed Labor with 26.12 per cent of the primary vote in 2017, has chosen police officer Glenn Doyle as its candidate.
Mr Doyle, who’s been a police officer since 1981 and is currently an inspector in Townsville, said he was well aware of the local law and order issues and hoped his experience and understanding would give the electorate comfort.
He said the major issues in the electorate were jobs, the economy and crime – in that order.
And he said there was no doubt police were frustrated in the community.
“There’s a level of frustration that is reflected in the community about there doesn’t appear to be consequences for young people who are doing the wrong thing,” he said.
Labor held the seat in 2017 with a margin of just 1.1 per cent, sustaining a 0.7 per cent swing against them following preference flows.
Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk this week conceded holding onto Mundingburra was going to be tough.
While the party is yet to decide who will contest the seat, registered nurse Simon Mitchell from the Left Faction has put his name forward.
Local councillor Les Walker was also tipped to throw his hat in the ring from the party’s Right.
The LNP suffered a 14.5 per cent swing against them on the primary vote in 2017, while One Nation secured 16.67 per cent of the vote.
Ian Bowron, who is running for One Nation, lives in the Hinchinbrook electorate but asked to run in Mundingburra because he wants to move there.
Mr Bowron, who used to be a police officer and a mines operator, said youth crime was an issue.
“I’ve talked to shop owners in Mundingburra and especially in the suburb of Douglas, they’re saying they get a lot of juveniles that come in and shoplift,” he said.
Mr Bowron said he wanted appropriate sentencing and punishment while claiming more police on the ground were better than a police helicopter.
He also called for education centres outside of major cities to help employment.
Katter’s Australian Party secured 13.88 per cent of the primary vote in 2017.
Candidate Alannah Tomlinson, who also doesn’t live in the electorate, said crime was frustrating residents.
“People want that issue fixed now,” she said.
Ms Tomlinson, who’s mainly worked in administration, said the party was pushing for relocation sentencing for young criminals.
She said how the economy was tracking was a big issue in the seat, saying it wasn’t just the COVID-19 pandemic that had played havoc.
“We need to stop waiting for the southeast corner to come in and save us because they’re not coming,” she said.