Brettlyn ‘Beaver’ Neal is asking you to vote for Brett Neal in Mirani — here’s why

The conservative minor party candidate said just because she has “bigger balls than most” people want to call her a male — but her untypical birth name Brett is just a family quirk that she’s dealt with since school.

Senator Pauline Hanson and Brettlyn ‘Beaver’ Neal. Picture: Contributed

Brettlyn ‘Beaver’ Neal is listed as Brett Neal as a candidate, and on all her official voting material, sparking speculation online as to why.
But the One Nation candidate said there is a simple answer — her legal name is Brett.

In Ms Neal’s telling, both she and her uncle shared the name Brett so to make things easier growing up, she went by Brettlyn.

Unprompted, she acknowledged rumours spreading around that she had had a “sex-change” and laughed them off as ridiculous.

“My birth name is Brett Elizabeth Neal — family, friends call me Brettlyn,” she said.

“Most people know me as Beaver from Fred Brophy’s.”

Boxing champion and cup-winning camel jockey Brettlyn ‘Beaver’ Neal during her campaign for the seat of Cook as the One Nation candidate. She is now running as the One Nation candidate for Mirani at the 2024 state election.

Ms Neal said had dealt with “bullies” taking issue with her name since she was in school and that negative people only fuel her desire to succeed.

“Just because I have bigger balls than most people and I’m willing to stand up for myself they want to call me a male,” she said.

“I truly want to thank the people who have supported me.”

She’s not the only person in her family with an untypical name — her brother’s name is Jan and she has three female cousins named Christopher, Terry, and Toni.

Fred Brophy’s Boxing Troupe is where Beaver made her name, later working as Pauline Hanson’s personal assistant and unsuccessfully running for the Far North seat of Cook.

She works closely with disadvantaged kids, including in remote Indigenous communities, also having worked as a jillaroo, security guard, rugby player and charity fundraiser.

Now she’s running in Mirani against Katter’s Australian Party MP Stephen Andrew, who was disendorsed by One Nation before he joined the KAP.

KAP’s Member for Mirani Stephen Andrew (centre) with Robbie Katter MP KAP Leader and Member for Traeger (right), Shane Knuth MP KAP Member for Hill (left), Stephen Andrew MP KAP Member for Mirani and Bob Katter MP KAP Federal Member for Kennedy (back right, wearing hat). Picture: Nigel Hallett

And despite One Nation putting the KAP above the LNP on other how-to-vote cards across Queensland, it’s asking Mirani voters to preference the major party above its former MP.

The LNP has returned the favour, with Mirani candidate Glen Kelly’s how-to-vote card placing Mr Andrew 4th, behind One Nation, and the Family First party.

Mr Andrew said it showed One Nation was “duplicitous” compared to its public statements on putting the major parties last.

“If they’re interested in doing the right thing by small parties, I don’t know how that works,” he said.

“I gave her the second place on my how to vote card.”

Ms Neal said the how-to-vote cards were a matter for the party, but she personally wouldn’t be comfortable voting for Mr Andrew after he unwittingly wrote a reference for a convicted rapist.

That was for a man who later apologised to Mr Andrew for misleading him about the nature of his offending in a handwritten letter.

“He apologised for what it did to my reputation, my family,” Mr Andrew said.

“You can spot a thief but you can’t spot a liar.”