Labor’s Michael Riordan concedes in Gaven giving the Gold Coast 10 LNP MPs in new parliament
THE 2015 state election is over for the Gold Coast, with the seat of Gaven declared in favour of the LNP.
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THE 2015 state election is over for the Gold Coast, with the seat of Gaven declared in favour of the LNP.
The LNP’s Sid Cramp will be sworn in as the new member for Gaven after Labor’s Michael Riordan officially conceded late yesterday after one of the tightest electoral counts in the state.
Despite a statewide swing of 11.2 per cent, the Gold Coast also returned its nine incumbent LNP members.
INDEPENDENT TO DECIDE GOVERNMENT
As counting came to a close yesterday, Mr Riordan trailed Mr Cramp by 912 votes but decided to thrown in the towel after it was determined the margin was too much to overcome.
Mr Cramp yesterday said he looked forward to continuing the work he began when his campaign kicked off more than seven months ago.
“I worked hard on the campaign and I want to continue this,” he said.
“Michael was a professional and it was really nice that he conceded in such a dignified way.
“It has been a long road and now, for the best of the people of Gaven, we can go forward and nobody is in limbo here anymore.”
With Gaven settled, attention now turns to the four remaining undecided seats, with the LNP ahead in three and Labor set to take Maryborough.
Under current projections, Labor will win 44 of the 89 seats, while the LNP will secure 42, making minority government a certainty.
Independent Peter Wellington is set to announce his decision on who he will back today.
Mr Riordan thanked his supporters for backing him during the tight election.
“It was a close fight and I am disappointed but I wish Sid all the best,” he said.
“When it comes to this seat it was really a battle of two elections — the ballot on the day which we were extraordinarily close on but were not able to keep up with the balance of postal votes. Sid is excited and he admitted he will have a big learning curve but I wish him well.”
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