Election 2017: Sam O’Connor feeling ‘confident’ in defeating Rowan Holzberger
THE outcome of key Gold Coast seats is likely to come down to pre-polling with the Queensland Electoral Commission confirming a staggering 20 per cent of Gold Coaster’s cast their vote before today.
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FOLLOW the Gold Coast Bulletin’s live election day coverage below through polling day and into tonight as the Gold Coast and Queesland vote in the 2017 State Election.
THE CLOSE OF VOTING:
ONE of the reasons polling booths were not as congested in the past today was many Gold Coast residents had already voted.
The Queensland Electoral Commission estimates more than one fifth of Gold Coasters had already cast their ballots in the two weeks of pre-polling in the lead up to Election Day.
By lunchtime yesterday the QEC confirmed 20 per cent of voters had cast their ballots.
Candidates and volunteers at the pre-polling booths told the Gold Coast Bulletin that Friday had been by far their biggest day.
In past federal, state and council elections, residents had become frustrated by the lengthy wait to cast votes.
While today got off to a fast start there was a steady attendance on the booths and good atmosphere.
After voting stopped at 6pm, the counting began with QEC staff checking the votes lodged today.
The counting process tonight should continue until about 10pm.
The count will then resume tomorrow.
THE FINAL HOUR:
IT’s the final hour of voting for the 2016 State Government election but two of the Gold Coast’s MPs have continued to push their message to last-minute voters.
Mermaid Beach MP Ray Stevens was handing out to voters at Broadbeach State School in the heart of his safe seat while Burleigh MP Michael Hart and his team of volunteers were at Varsity Lakes College.
Despite being conservative heartland, Mr Stevens said he was not taking it for granted and was pushing to secure support.
“It has been a long day but I have had a very positive response as I have been to all the booths in my electorate, even those I share with other electorates,” he said.
“It is hard to know how things will go under the new preferential voting system, which many people do not like but I believe we have had a favourable response.
“We will go right to the death at 6pm and I have been hopping from booth to booth.
“It is a special day and if you are not going hard to the end you shouldn’t be in the game.”
Mr Stevens is expected to easily retain his safe seat for another term.
Meanwhile in the south, a hoarse-voiced Mr Hart said he was pleased with his feedback and said voters had primarily spoken to him about congestion issues on the M1 and power prices.
“It has been a long and hot day but the feedback has been pretty good so far,” he said.
“I want to increase my margins so I will be out here to the last minute for every vote.”
Party cladding began to be removed from Varsity College around 15 minutes before polling booths closed
O’CONNOR CONFIDENT ABOUT BONNEY
BONNEY candidates are using every hour of polling day to try and win as many seats as possible with the seat expected to go down to the wire.
ALP candidate Rowan Holzberger and LNP Sam O’Connor were using the last two hours of polling to hand out how to vote cards at Arundel State School.
Mr O’Connor said he was feeling quietly confident.
“I have better name recognition than I thought,” he said.
Volunteers from both parties swarmed voters as they tried to enter the polling booths all trying to ensure their how to vote card was taken.
By contrast Greens candidate Amin Javanmard only had two volunteers at the booth.
Independent Robert Buegge had volunteers at the booth while the other independent Ron Nightingale had none.
Mr Holzberger said it was difficult to determine who was getting a majority of the vote because few people were taking how to vote cards.
POLLING BOOTHS WIND DOWN:
POLLING booths in the city’s south are quiet as the Election Day rush slows to a crawl in the final hours of voting.
From the beach to the Hinterland, a small but steady stream of voters have continued to flow into polling stations.
In typical Gold Coast fashion, Broadbeach Resident Fiona Reid voted at Broadbeach State School on the way to the beach, clad in a bikini and board shorts.
Ms Reid said she was enjoying the warm weather and was pleased to vote.
“I just live behind the school and last time I had to vote I came in my bikini too. But I had so many people looking at me so I decided I had to wear shorts this time,” the secretary said.
“It was easy to pick who I was voting vote. The main issue for me is the environment ... I don’t like One Nation and didn’t want to give them any votes.”
At Robina State School, Federal McPherson MP Karen Andrews was handing out for incumbent Mermaid Beach MP Ray Stevens who has been crisscrossing the safe LNP seat to try and secure every last vote.
Ms Andrews said she had received strong feedback from conservative voters at the booth where Labor did not have a presence.
Mermaid Beach is conservative heartland and has never been lost to Labor or a minor parties.
Mr Stevens has held the seat since 2006.
HOW TO VOTE CARDS HANDED OUT BY ACTIVISTS
ACTIVIST group Get Up are handing out their own version of how to vote cards in the marginal seats of Gaven and Bonney.
Volunteers in orange T-shirts bearing the left-aligned group’s name have been giving cards showing how voters can vote for either the Greens or Labor in both the seats.
“Queensland has 300 sunny days a year. If more people had rooftop solar, it would ease the burden on struggling households and bring energy bills down,” the Gaven how to vote card reads.
“But the LNP has not plan to help more households go solar, and is pulling the plug on the renewable energy target.”
The Bonney how to vote card focuses on the controversial Adani coal mine.
“We need more investment in local transport, health and schools, but Tim Nicholls and the LNP are more interested in taking care of their billionaire mates,” the Bonney how to vote card reads.
Both cards proclaim “vote against the LNP” before listing how to preference either the Greens or ALP first.
The Bonney card even shows how to give preferences to independent Robert Buegge.
On both cards the LNP is put last.
The Nerang State High School booth in Gaven has four Get Up volunteers handing out the cards, outnumbering the single Greens representative, Gaven candidate Sally Spain.
Voters have been steadily visiting the booth with numbers today with numbers starting to rise as it gets closer to the 6pm closing time.
Earlier this morning, there was a line out the door but now voters do not have to wait to case their vote.
STUCKEY’S CAR DAMAGED
INCUMBENT Currumbin MP Jann Stuckey says she is ‘shaken’ after her car was damaged on the campaign trail this afternoon.
Ms Stuckey, who has held her marginal seat since 2004 says she stopped at Tallebudgera State School around noon and came back to discover her windscreen had been smashed.
Ms Stuckey said the damaged would not deter her continuing to campaign for every last vote during the final hours of voting.
ANALYSIS BY PAUL WESTON
ALMOST half way through the State election on the Gold Coast today and despite not knowing how people are voting, what can we tell you? Quite a lot actually.
Opposition frontbencher John-Paul Langbroek has such a low Labor presence in his Surfers Paradise electorate that he has spent all of the morning in seats the LNP was desperate to hold west of the Pacific Motorway.
Mr Langbroek has appeared relaxed, joking with LNP volunteers first in Bonney at the Arundel State Primary School and later at in Gaven at the Pacific Pines State Primary School.
These are two of the biggest booths in the two Coast seats which Labor hopes to win.
“I’ve had a very positive feeling in my booths. There has been a very low Labor presence, in fact a non-Labor presence in my booth,” he told the Bulletin.
“It does seem that their army is not working where they don’t have any chance.”
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Mudgeeraba LNP MP Ros Bates, also an experienced frontbencher, has had a similar experience in her hinterland seat.
“At the Benowa booth there are no Labor supporters. They have an open box sitting there (with how-to-vote forms), that’s it,” Ms Bates said.
“That how much Labor doesn’t care about the Gold Coast,” she added.
At the Emerald Lakes booth, which is in the marginal Gaven electorate, Labor had one volunteer and two signs up.
This is a wealthy area and shows the ALP is not bothering stretching resources where it can only pick up a few votes.
By contrast, at Pacific Pines, Labor has a huge presence on the booth with signs showcasing candidate Meaghan Scanlon powering over everything else.
“It’s been steady all day. We are definitely seeing people are ready for some change (with a Labor MP),” she said.
LNP MP Sid Cramp, who has almost lost his voice after working the pre-poll, was camped out at Nerang State High School in a working area where he knows he has to work hard for votes.
“Look, it is as expected. I felt the pre-poll personally was very positive for us,” he said.
“This is Election Day. Things tighten up. People know what they want this time. People are knowing how they want to vote from the time they come in here.”
Mr Cramp estimates that half of the voters arriving at booths this morning had made up their mind.
Ms Bates in Mudgeeraba agrees and without a high profile and promoted opponent she knows much of that vote is going to her.
Further north in Broadwater, One Nation’s Brenden Ball who has 56 volunteers out at six booths is a stronger on-the-ground force than Labor.
Mr Ball does not know if he has enough support to beat LNP candidate David Crisafulli, but he believes his numbers will be double that when he ran in a Federal poll for Fadden.
“The team is pretty excited. I’m trying not to get carried away. There’s plenty of rusted on Libs,” he said.
One consistent theme is the Greens failing to have strong support at the booths.
At Pacific Pines there was only one Greens volunteer handing out in what is a three-way race between its candidate Sally Spain, Mr Cramp and Ms Scanlon.
At Nerang there were two Greens volunteers and Mr Ball could find none at some Broadwater booths.
“They came and set up some corflutes. Even the bunting, they didn’t tie it up properly. It blew off,” he said.
What does all this mean in terms of numbers?
When counting begins after voting stops at 6pm today, the early indications from the booths is the LNP MPs in safe Coast seats will not face the same backlash when the Newman Government went to the polls in 2015.
In the marginals it is game on, because Labor this time resourced the booths and its strategy may get them results.
BROADWATER ISSUES
VOTERS have been complaining to volunteers they are having trouble finding the Runaway Bay polling booth.
One Nation volunteer Jo Hubner said one gentleman took about half an hour to find the booth at the Runaway Bay Indoor Sports Centre.
“Nobody knows that it’s actually here,” she said.
“People think it’s still at the library.”
LNP Broadwater candidate David Crisafulli said he was not aware of issues and turn out at the booths had been really good so far.
“Feedback has been positive and our campaign didn’t start 26 days ago,” he said.
The former Newman Government Minister is expected to easily win the seat with a notional margin or about 16 per cent after the redistribution earlier this year.
The LNP have more than 100 volunteers out at polling booths in the seat this morning.
One Nation candidate Brendan Ball was hoping his 55 volunteers would help him mount a challenge.
“What I am seeing has been really positive,” he said.
“I am still not the favourite but I am not ruling it out just yet.”
ALP candidate Peter Flori has volunteers on most booths.
PREMIER’S SHOCK VISIT
PREMIER Annastacia Palaszczuk’s surprise visit today to a Gold Coast polling booth was in part to deliver an early Christmas present.
The second stage of light rail linking Parklands to Helenvale will open before its scheduled start in January next year.
The Premier told voters on the Glitter Strip that their vote will be critical to her returning to government.
At the Arundel State Primary School just before 10am, the Premier greeted Bonney candidate Rowan Holzberger and his volunteers before talking to voters as they entered the busy booth.
“This is critical, this is crucial, and as I’ve always said the Gold Coast is critical,” the Premier said.
“We have the Commonwealth Games coming here next year. I’m really excited about that. Yesterday I just hoped on the second stage of light rail.
“And in more good news for the Gold Coast I can announce that second stage of the light rail will be open before Christmas. So a nice Christmas present for the Gold Coast.”
WHERE YOU CAN CAST YOUR VOTE ON THE GOLD COAST
The Premier told voters that “every single vote matters” and promised to work hard for them.
“There is a clear choice today, whether or not the people of this State want a decent, hard working good government or do they want the cuts and chaos of Tim Nicholls and One Nation,” the Premier said.
She asked Liberal voters to think long and hard about whether they shared the values of One Nation.
“And many Liberal people have said to me for the first time ever they are voting Labor to stop One Nation,” she said.
Told about the today’s traffic jam on the Pacific Motorway, the Premier replied: “And that’s why we are going to fix the M1. My Government is the only government that has invested in the M1.”
11.30AM
VOTERS are struggling to find a park at the Ashmore State School polling booth on Currumburra Rd.
Some voters were driving around the block to try and find a park at the school with a line up of cars in the parking area.
Despite the difficulties parking there are no lines at the booth.
A sausage sizzle run by the school also has a steady stream of customers.
Gourmet burger chain Burger Urge were trying to cash in on the election with working handing out “how to vote cards” which offer free chips with any purchase.
Both the LNP and Labor have taken over the fences to the school, decking it out in branded bunting.
Greens posters were also spotted but no volunteers were handing out how to vote cards.
9.30AM
PREMIER Annastacia Palaszczuk has made a shock visit to a Gold Coast polling booth.
The Premier has arrived at the Arundel State Primary School to support Labor candidate Rowan Holzberger.
Coast LNP heavyweights John-Paul Langbroek and Cameron Caldwell are working at the booth.
Labor hope to win the seat of Bonney and the school is one of its biggest booths.
Polling suggests it is 50-50 between Mr Holzberger and the LNP’s Sam O’Connor.
Mr Langbroek, the Surfers Paradise MP, said Labor was only focusing on marginal seats on the Coast.
Unlike the 2015 campaign, this is the first time on Election Day that a Premier has stopped off at a Coast polling booth.
The Premier spent overnight on the Coast after taking a ride late yesterday on the new section of light rail stage two.
She took a walk on the beach at Broadbeach this morning before joining the campaign trail.
The Premier was due to go to Brisbane next.
EARLIER:
HUNDREDS of volunteers have worked overnight preparing and protecting booths on the Gold Coast before the first wave of voters arrive at 8am today.
In the marginal seats of Bonney, the race to get the best poll booth position began as soon as State schools closed yesterday afternoon.
Bonney LNP candidate Sam O’Connor told the Bulletin: “We’ve had people out all night. We basically were there at the Labrador State School from four o’clock.”
Mr O’Connor was confident that the LNP courtesy of the early start had the best positioning of all the parties and independents at larger booths like the Arundel Primary School.
“We’ve got people at each booth. We should have five or six at any one time. Generally the younger ones will do the day,” he said.
“It’s been good for us on the pre-poll. There has been a good vibe.”
Labor Bonney candidate Rowan Holzberger, who campaigned in the 2015 poll, confirmed his volunteers had also started late yesterday preparing their booths.
Experienced campaigner Ros Bates in Mudgeeraba said it appeared that Labor was targeting only the marginal seats with resources.
“I’ve had all my booths done last night. It’s a sea of blue,” the LNP frontbencher said.
“I don’t think the Labor candidate (Paul Taylor) will turn up in Mudgeeraba. He hasn’t been in the electorate at all.
“There’s been no Labor how-to-vote at the pre-poll. The One Nation guy will have some signs. They’re (Labor) not even here. They’re running dead.”
A look at early booths shows the LNP messaging is about their policies rather than personalities.
The Merrimac booth for Ms Bates featuring positive messaging focusing on the party’s move to cut electricity bills, car registration and provide free swimming lessons for families.
Voting across the Coast gets underway at 8am and finishes at 6pm.
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