Katter candidate, Duane Amos, ponders federal politics after “breaking the backs” of the major parties

Smashing the major parties’ dominance across a sprawling electorate has left a Far North Katter’s Australian Party candidate quietly mulling the prospect of a tilt at federal politics.

Police officer and Katter’s Australian Party candidate for Cook, Duane Amos. Picture: Samuel Davis

Smashing the major parties’ dominance across a sprawling electorate has left a Far North Katter’s Australian Party (KAP) candidate quietly mulling the prospect of a tilt at federal politics.

A forecast 12 per cent swing to the LNP has the Coalition’s David Kempton set to unseat Labor’s Cynthia Lui after three terms in office.

Member for Cook Cynthia Lui on the phone while at an ALP function at the West Cairns Bowls Club in Cairns following the state election. Picture: Brian Cassey

But the KAP’s Duane Amos, who boasted more than 21 per cent of first preference votes near deadline with around 16,000 votes tallied, said he could hold his head high after taking on the two-party duopoly.

“I had two plans,” Mr Amos said.

“One was to break the back of the Labor vote. They said it couldn’t be done but I don’t mind a challenge.

“The other was that I feel like I’ve done my job in terms of advocacy in the electorate.”

The LNP’s David Kempton greets voters at the Mareeba State School Polling Booth on Saturday afternoon. Picture Emily Barker.

With the fate of the Mossman mill still uncertain, high cost-of-living in remote communities and the lack of public infrastructure investment, Mr Amos said it was now up to the Coalition to come to the party.

“My concern from an LNP perspective is that their plan will come from Brisbane and that’s a red flag for me,” he said.

“We’ve seen for far too long that this area hasn’t gotten the true representation it requires.”

Mr Amos strongly hinted that a tilt at federal politics was in the offing at the upcoming election, with Member for Leichhardt Warren Entsch set to retire.

“There’s another election coming up very shortly,” he said.

The state’s fourth largest electorate, Cook covers more than 196,000km with the highest percentage of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander residents.

The electorate’s boundaries run from north of Ellis Beach, near Cairns, taking in the entirety of Cape York, the Torres Strait and parts of the Atherton Tablelands.

“Demographically, this area is so diverse and so many different things are happening,” he said.

Attempts to contact Mr Kempton and Ms Lui prior to deadline were unsuccessful.

Originally published as Katter candidate, Duane Amos, ponders federal politics after “breaking the backs” of the major parties