NewsBite

State of play: Queensland leaders race to 47 seats

UPDATED: The Queensland election has taken an ugly turn, with candidates being hounded as they go to cast their votes and one even being spat on.

Liz BurkeLiz Burke
@lizeburke
5 min read
November 25, 2017 - 3:43PM
State Election 2017: Premier Palaszczuk visits Gold Cold Coast

THE Queensland election has taken a nasty turn with protesters hounding candidates as they carry out their democratic duties.

A group of Adani mine protesters claiming to represent young people ambushed Opposition Leader Tim Nicholls as he visited Brisbane polling booths on Saturday morning.

Anti-Adani activists had originally hounded Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk in the early days of the campaign before she made a shock announcement withdrawing support for a government loan for the project.

“We want a sustainable future, veto the loan to Adani,” protesters called out to Mr Nicholls as he went to cast his vote in his northern Brisbane electorate of Clayfield.

In the nearby electorate of Ashley, One Nation candidate Shane Byrne has claimed one of his volunteers was spat on while handing out how-to-vote cards.

Mr Byrne told the Courier-Mail One Nation federal leader Pauline Hanson was “quite angry” over the incident.

Meanwhile, the Greens have been accused of using sly election tactics by using the word “independent” and One Nation’s signature colour on corflutes in its hardest fought seat.

Election posters showing Greens leader Any McMahon, who is gunning for deputy premier Jackie Trad’s seat of South Brisbane, have been noticed around the electorate for neglecting to mention the party’s name.

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk cast her vote at Inala State School this morning without controversy.

She bought a democracy sausage, with no onions, from the Lions club stand at the voting booth but declined to bite into it in front of the waiting TV cameras saying she would “eat it in the car”.

Despite Queenslanders heading to the polls today there’s still no guarantee voters will be the ones to have the final say over who takes power.

The latest polls show Labor is tipped to win and Ms Palaszczuk will hold onto the state’s top job, becoming the nation’s first female leader to win two elections.

However, a Galaxy poll published by the Courier-Mail shows voters may not be happy handing Labor the right to govern, casting some doubt over which way votes will really fall.

Polls have Labor four points ahead of the Tim Nicholls-led Liberal National Party, and the final count is expected to be close with no guarantee a premier will be declared tonight.

Both major parties go into the race with 41 seats, and need to win 47 to form a majority government.

THE ONE NATION FACTOR

The state election was never going to be a two-horse race with Pauline Hanson’s One Nation running candidates in 61 of the state’s 93 electorates.

The rogue minor party’s primary vote has dropped off slightly over the campaign’s four weeks but is expected to pick up seats in the state’s north where voters have turned on Labor, and the LNP risks being punished for its federal counterparts’ chaotic leadership.

In the event neither party reaches the magic number of 47, the leaders may have to rely on One Nation for support to form government.

Labor has ruled out doing deals with any minor parties, emphasising One Nation, and while the LNP has pledged not to form a formal coalition or share the ministry with One Nation, Mr Nicholls has been tight-lipped over whether he would consider doing a deal to accept the party’s backing if his leadership relied on it.

Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk hugs a nursing staff member outside the Gold Coast University Hospital on the last day of the campaign.
Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk hugs a nursing staff member outside the Gold Coast University Hospital on the last day of the campaign.

The Premier has capitalised on Mr Nicholls’ refusal to give a straight answer over deals with One Nation, and has ramped up rhetoric about a coalition between the two parties, saying a vote for the Liberals “is a vote for a chaotic LNP/One Nation coalition”.

Ms Palaszcuk has also ruled out accepting backing from Katter’s Australian Party, whose parliamentarians she has worked successfully during her first time, citing conflicts over firearm policies. She’s determined to achieve a majority vote and have Labor govern in its own right.

LAST-DITCH PITCHES

Both leaders, as well as their minor party counterparts, will continue campaigning until polls close at 6pm AEST. But they’ve also tried to get their message across before the majority of Queensland’s three million voters hit the voting booths from 8am today.

In a video message posted to Twitter, Mr Nicholls asked voters to put a “one” next to their local LNP candidate to enable his party to “build a better Queensland”.

“The LNP will provide more local jobs, by cutting payroll tax and building stuff. We’ll make electricity cheaper, saving families $780 over three years, and we’ll build the roads, bridge and dams Queensland needs,” he said.

Ms Palaszcuk focused on what she’s framed as a “clear choice” between stability and chaos making her final pitch to Channel 7 on Friday night.

“That choice is to continue good, decent government that I have been leading as opposed to Tim Nicholls and One Nation, the cuts and the chaos,” she said. “I want people to think very seriously, every single vote is going to count at this election. I want people to think long and hard before they go into vote, because I want Queensland to go forwards, not backwards.”

Queensland Opposition Leader Tim Nicholls has made a last-ditch appeal to voters.
Queensland Opposition Leader Tim Nicholls has made a last-ditch appeal to voters.
The latest polls points to a narrow Labor win.
The latest polls points to a narrow Labor win.

Though she’s not running in the election herself, One Nation’s federal leader Senator Pauline Hanson has been campaigning all around Queensland over the past four weeks. She’s confident a protest against the “tired old parties” will fall in One Nation’s favour.

“I think there’s going to be a big protest vote against the major political parties, but I also believe that people are looking for change,” she told 2GB in her most recent interview.

THE SEATS TO WATCH

The Premier is making it clear to voters that every ballot counts and every seat is being fought for, but according to the Courier-Mail there are 25 seats that will determine who governs the state.

Four new seats and changes in boundaries will change things up from previous elections, and the introduction of preferential voting means preferences will have an impact never before seen in a Queensland vote making the election difficult to call.

One Nation Leader Senator Pauline Hanson and Queensland One Nation leader Steve Dickson at a polling station in Buderim...The One Nation factor at this election could be significant.
One Nation Leader Senator Pauline Hanson and Queensland One Nation leader Steve Dickson at a polling station in Buderim...The One Nation factor at this election could be significant.

Any seat where One Nation has a go, like Thuringowa on the western edge of Townsville, will be closely watched.

Labor’s seat of South Brisbane, held by deputy premier Jackie Trad, is at risk of falling to the Greens.

And the Premier has predicted Toowoomba North, held by the LNP on a 5 per cent margin, will be a bellwether, saying if Labor can snatch it the party can

Voting closes at 6pm AEST when the count will begin, but with such a close and hard to predict result ahead, there’s no promise of having a clear outcome by the end of the night.

More related stories

Original URL: https://www.news.com.au/finance/work/leaders/state-of-play-queensland-leaders-race-to-47-seats/news-story/564249347a5611a9011b4512e81d9151