Redland doorknocking politics: if they ring your doorbell will they win?
Redland city’s three state seats have become battlegrounds as election candidates entice voters with solutions to five key issues: living costs, housing, crime, Olympic venues, and hospital parking.
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A 25-day state election campaign is ready to kick off on Tuesday after the government goes into caretaker mode, with three bayside seats of Redlands, Oodgeroo, and Capalaba under close scrutiny.
Some residents in Redland City may already feel like the campaign has started with the 10 announced candidates for the city’s three state seats already knocking on more than 20,500 doors, or more than 40 per cent of the city’s residential addresses.
If winners were those who knocked on the most number of doors, then the LNP’s Rebecca Young would pick up the ALP-held Redlands after knocking on a massive 6000 doors already.
Former LNP senator Amanda Stoker, 42, would win, retaining Oodgeroo for the LNP with 5000 home visits under her belt in the seat vacated by long-serving LNP MP Mark Robinson.
Of all the city’s announced candidates, ALP’s Don Brown, 43, has knocked on the most number of doors so far, with 7000 chalked up in his Capalaba electorate, and that’s before the campaign has even officially started.
His main opponent, victims of crime advocate and LNP candidate Russell Field, has knocked on more than 2000 doors.
Mr Field, 68, has been an outspoken advocate for crime victims since his son, Matthew, was struck and killed alongside his pregnant fiancee, Kate Leadbetter, by a teenager in a stolen car in Alexandra Hills on Australia Day in 2021.
If doorknocking were the only requisite, ALP candidates Irene Henley in Oodgeroo and sitting Redlands MP Kim Richards, 51, would not get a look in as neither have officially hit the hustings, even though all candidates have done letterbox drops.
But in reality, there is compulsory preferential voting, and voters are a little more discerning than doorknocking statistics.
Across all three Redland City state electorates, the five issues on the majority of voters’ radars are costs of living and rising grocery prices at the top; rising rental and housing costs; out-of-control crime; concerns about the Birkdale Olympic site and Toondah Harbour; and lastly, parking at Redland Hospital.
With approximately a further 40,000 doors to be knocked across the three seats, all of the candidates still have a lot more pavement pounding to go.
There were 36,176 enrolled to vote in the ALP-held seat of Capalaba for the 2020 election; 33,034 for the LNP-held seat of Oodgeroo, which takes in Cleveland and North Stradbroke Island; and 37,638 for the ALP seat of Redlands, which includes five bays islands.
All three seats are interesting for different reasons: Redlands because it is a marginal seat held by the government; Oodgeroo because its sitting MP has retired; and Capalaba because ALP stalwart Don Brown is being challenged by Mr Field, who has gained a following after sadly being thrust into the headlines as an advocate for victims of crime when his son was killed.
REDLANDS (ALP held with 3.9% margin)
The marginal seat of Redlands is expected to be a battleground between two strong women candidates from the main two rival parties.
It is held by the ALP’s Kim Richards with a slender margin of 3.9 per cent, setting the stage for a potentially fierce contest.
It covers the mainland suburbs of Sheldon, Victoria Point, Thornlands, and Redland Bay, alongside several Moreton Bay islands.
Ms Richards first secured the seat in 2017, capitalising on a wave of support for the ALP and unseating the LNP’s Matt McEachan.
In the 2020 election, she solidified her position, getting 43.5 per cent of the primary vote and a two-party-preferred result of 53.9 per cent against LNP’s Henry Pike, who went on to win the federal seat of Bowman in 2022.
It was a notable swing of 11.2 per cent towards Labor, which indicated a strong base of support that she will have to work hard to maintain at this election after claims she has only given lip service to fix parking issues at the Weinam Creek ferry terminal.
She faces a diverse field of candidates, notably a former Chamber of Commerce president, the LNP’s Rebecca Young.
The Greens candidate Kristie Lockhart and the Legalise Cannabis Party’s Suzanne Spierenburg are also expected to erode some of the ALP vote.
The main local issues include road and ferry infrastructure, healthcare access, and environmental concerns.
The 2020 election result also revealed a divided electorate, with Labor winning the two-party-preferred vote in all three major areas — central, east, and west — though with varying margins. In the electorate’s west, the margin was a narrow 52.2 per cent offering the potential for LNP to capitalise.
OODGEROO (LNP held with 4.48% margin)
In the Oodgeroo electorate, incumbent Liberal National MP Mark Robinson is not seeking re-election, creating an opportunity for new candidates: Irene Henley from Labor, Amanda Stoker from the Liberal National Party, and Callen Sorensen Karklis from the Greens.
The seat is considered marginal, with an independent candidate, Claire Richardson, having polled more than 21 per cent in 2020, suggesting that an independent could potentially challenge both Labor and the new Liberal National candidate on October 26.
In the 2020 election, Mr Robinson secured 54.5 per cent of the two-party-preferred vote, while Labor’s Henley got 45.5 per cent, indicating a competitive landscape for the next election.
Ms Henley, a mental health nurse, aims to improve healthcare access, while Mr Sorensen Karklis brings local ties and a fresh perspective as a student and Quandamooka saltwater man.
Factional fighting within the Oodgeroo Labor branch, in which some members left the party, including Mr Sorensen Karklis, could play a role in polling for the Greens.
CAPALABA (ALP since 2015 with 9.8% margin)
Capalaba has been a stronghold for Labor since its creation in 1992, with the party holding the seat continuously until 2012 and reclaiming it in 2015.
In the 2020 state election, Mr Brown secured a decisive victory with 59.8 per cent of the two-party-preferred vote, defeating LNP candidate Bev Walters, who received 40.2 per cent and later settled a defamation wrangle outside court with Mr Brown ordered to pay $50,000.
Mr Brown’s strong showing is indicative of the seat’s relatively safe status for Labor, though recent polling suggests competition has intensified.
Mr Brown lives and grew up in the area and has university qualifications in applied science and law, and worked as a pathology scientist and an official for the United Workers Union before entering politics.
His toughest rival will be Russell Field, the LNP candidate, whose personal tragedy has galvanised his campaign.
Mr Field said he aimed to address issues of crime and community safety, promising to bring a fresh perspective.
Also in the race is the Greens’ Donna Weston, a lifelong resident of Redlands and a university music lecturer with a passion for environmental issues and social justice.
She has criticised the rapid development in Capalaba, which she believes has threatened local wildlife and the community’s quality of life.
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