Greens name 18-year-old as candidate for the seat of Redcliffe in 2020 State Election
An 18-year-old will go up against one of the state’s most experienced politicians, while another candidate is having a fifth crack at the seat in a hotly contested electorate this Queensland Election.
Moreton
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Will Simon will be one of the youngest candidates running in the upcoming State Election and he is ready to take on some of the state’s most experienced politicians.
The 18-year-old Redcliffe man was endorsed by The Queensland Greens on Thursday as its candidate for the seat of Redcliffe, north of Brisbane.
State Labor MP and Attorney-General Yvette D’Ath has held the seat since the 2014 by-election. Before that she was the Federal Member for Petrie – which also covers the Redcliffe peninsula.
LNP’s candidate Kerri-Anne Dooley is no stranger to an election campaign having contested the seat four times.
Independent Ian Philp is also running again.
It was not a close race in 2017 with ALP winning with a margin of 7.6.
Mr Simon said he was not concerned about his lack of experience.
“I like the challenge,” he said.
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The teen graduated from Grace Lutheran College Rothwell last year.
He has previously held a seat on the Queensland Youth parliament in 2017 and 2018.
But Mr Simon said he had been interested in politics since primary school after taking up debating.
He volunteered for the Greens party during the 2017 State Election.
“But I felt like I needed to do more, especially after the 2019 Federal Election which was when I officially joined the party,” he said.
“Young people are often told to stop moaning and do something if we don’t like the direction that our government is going in. That’s why I’ve decided to run and get behind the Greens’ progressive plan for a better future.”
Mr Simon said he would campaign for more jobs and fully-funded schools and hospitals.
“I’m excited about the Greens people-first economic recovery plan to create tens of thousands of jobs by investing in renewable energy, public housing and infrastructure,” he said.
“We will create genuinely free health and education, with more doctors, nurses and GP clinics, as well as more teachers, smaller class sizes and no more fees.
“We will fund our plans by making big corporations, developers and banks pay their fair share.”
The State Election is due to be held on October 31.
Pre-polling will open from October 19.