LNP not conceding defeat in by-election for Anna Bligh's old seat
LABOR'S Jackie Trad has been appointed to a shadow ministry despite votes in the South Brisbane by-election still being counted.
JACKIE Trad has been appointed Queensland opposition spokeswoman for transport, environment and the arts despite votes in the South Brisbane by-election still being counted.
The Electoral Commission of Queensland is yet to declare Ms Trad the winner of yesterday's by-election and the Liberal National Party has not conceded defeat.
Labor leader Annastacia Palaszczuk said there was only 1200 votes, mostly postal, left to be counted and the LNP would need to secure an unlikely 75 per cent of that to win.
Today Ms Trad, a former ministerial adviser in the Beattie and Bligh governments, had 52 per cent of the vote compared to the LNP's Clem Grehan's 48 per cent on a two-party preferred basis.
The Green's Jo Bragg claimed 20 per cent of first preference votes.
Ms Palaszczuk said Labor was quietly confident.
“We welcome an extra pair of hands into the shadow cabinet,” she told reporters in Brisbane.
Ms Trad said it was almost certain that Labor would retain the seat.
“Can I thank the locals of South Brisbane, particularly West End, for putting their confidence in me,” she told reporters in Brisbane.
Ms Trad will be one of just seven Labor MPs that will hold the LNP's 78 MPs to account.
South Brisbane has been one of the safest Labor seats in the state.
Former Premier Anna Bligh, who had held South Brisbane since 1995, forced the by-election when she quit politics immediately after being re-elected at the March 24 state election.
Despite having a 15 per cent margin heading into the polls, Ms Bligh suffered a 10 per cent swing.
Ms Trad was hit by another two per cent swing on Saturday.
Premier Campbell Newman today said Mr Grehan could still win South Brisbane and had made massive inroads to gain a further 1.8 per cent swing.
He said Labor still didn't understand how unpopular it was with Queenslanders.
In 80 years the seat had only been held by a conservative party member for three years.
“That shows you how hard, how effectively Clem Grehan campaigned and how many of the people over there do actually want to see a change from Labor,” he told reporters in Brisbane.
Retired Labor councillor David Hinchliffe said the outlook for Labor is bleak and called for the resignation of ALP state secretary Anthony Chisholm and is urging several administrative committee members, including Bill Ludwig, to quit.
“This is a monumental disaster heaped upon a wipeout,” he told the ABC.
Ms Palaszczuk said a review is currently underway into why Labor did so badly overall in the polls but she doesn't want heads to roll.
“This is the time the party needs stability, my focus is on rebuilding,” she said.
AAP