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Articles on Queensland elections

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Queensland Premier Campbell Newman congratulates Health and Community Services Minister Tracy Davis as she is sworn in. AAP Image/John Pryke

Campbell’s cabinet and the curious case of the career politicians

During the much-anticipated announcement of his new cabinet line-up in Brisbane last Friday, incoming Queensland Premier Campbell Newman emphasised his new team’s diversity, both geographically and in…
The Bligh led Labor party’s devastating defeat in Queensland could present difficulties for federal labor seats. AAP/ Dan Peled

The lie of the land for Labor after the Queensland poll

The Queensland election can tell us a lot about Labor’s electoral future. There is no doubt that if the Queensland state election landslide against Labor were extrapolated to federal boundaries, the federal…
Former ALP Minister Barry Jones says the party needs significant reform. AAP

The decay of the political process

Queensland has developed a tradition of political swings that are far greater than the national average. Labor held only one Queensland House of Representatives seat in 1975 and in 1996 only two. The major…
Gillard will try to distance herself from Queensland Labor, but it will be a tough sell. AAP/Alan Porritt

After Queensland: the ALP will struggle to recover in Canberra

A notable feature of the Queensland election outcome was, as in New South Wales last year, opinion polls correctly predicted the outcome. In both cases, some observers found it hard to credit that Labor…
Campbell Newman and close confidants Jeff Seeney (right) and Tim Nicholls at the first meeting on the LNP government. AAP/Dan Peled

Queensland election: Labor on the wrong side of the boom

A lot of the coverage of the Queensland election has so far focused on the headline numbers. Admittedly, these are startling. The LNP will control 78 of 89 seats in the unicameral Parliament. Labor’s primary…
Campbell Newman celebrates his victory. AAP/Dave King

LNP avalanche in Queensland

The large swing to the Liberal National Party (LNP) that had been widely predicted for the Queensland state election has duly materialised at the polls on election day. At the time of writing, late on…
Labor leader Anna Bligh is likely to lose the Queensland election, but what are the federal implications? AAP Image/Jack Tran

Queensland election: which seats matter for Labor?

The likely defeat of the Bligh Labor government in this weekend’s Queensland elections may not have the negative implications for the Gillard government that many commentators might expect. The presence…
The LNP will win power, but Campbell Newman may not win his seat.

Bligh will lose in Queensland, but it won’t be a wipeout

It’s long been said that Queensland is beautiful one day and perfect the next. But it has been a long time since Queensland politics reached these superlative heights. The state has been mired in controversies…
Newman and Bligh face off in real life, but how do they fare online? AAP/Dave Hunt

Queensland election on Twitter: a scorecard for Bligh and Newman

With every recent election, in Australia as well as elsewhere, parties and politicians are adding further to their arsenal of digital campaigning tools. In the 2010 federal election campaign, my colleagues…
After the election, healthcare reform needs to be a priority for the Queensland government. AAP Image/Dan Peled

Queensland’s top five health priorities this election

No matter who wins the Queensland election this Saturday, the next premier of Queensland will have to face up to some serious challenges within the state’s health system. There were improvements made under…
Neither Anna Bligh nor Campbell Newman seem keen to talk about Queensland’s staggering debt. AAP

Standing in the shadow of debt in the sunshine state

In the run-up to the Queensland state election, politicians are making all sorts of pledges to win over constituents, but few are willing to tackle a potentially paralysing problem: the spectacular growth…
Has Bob Katter’s Australia Party violated copyright law by using this image in an attack ad on Campbell Newman and the LNP? YouTube

In the frame: Bob Katter’s controversial campaign ad might violate copyright

The two black and white photographs used in the Katter’s Australian Party (KAP) anti-gay marriage advertisement were sourced online from a stock photo aggregator. The photographs are taken by a Paris-based…
Campbell Newman addresses workers during a campaign stop. AAP/Dan Peled

Is Campbell Newman’s Queensland election strategy in trouble?

The Liberal National Party chose an unconventional strategy when it decided make former Lord Mayor of Brisbane Campbell Newman its leader. Newman needs to win a seat in the Queensland parliament if he…
There’s more to this Act than environmental protection. Cam Pervan/Flickr

The Wild Rivers Act controversy

The debates and controversy around the Wild Rivers legislation can be perplexing. As John Holmes has argued, the Act’s significance stems from “the durability and intractability” of pre-existing contests…
Queenslanders don’t like coal seam gas, but a smart government could change all that. AAP

First job for the new Queensland government: fix coal seam gas

Three little words strike fear into the heart of at least 40% of Queenslanders: coal seam gas. These three seemingly innocuous words have managed to divide a state, and become the hottest topic in the…
Queenslanders will get a chance to vote for either Premier Anna Bligh or leader of the LNP, Campbell Newman on March 24. AAP image/John Pryke

Queensland election 2012: a likely win for Newman and the LNP

After much speculation, Queensland Premier Anna Bligh has today announced the date of the up-coming state elections. The poll, now to be held on March 24, comes after a difficult year for the Bligh government…
Don’t dismiss Bob Katter’s Australia Party. It’s going places. AAP/Tracy Nearmy

Don’t write off the Mad Katter’s Tea Party

It would be foolish for anyone to underestimate Bob Katter’s Australia Party. Its brand of socially conservative views blended with economic and trade protectionism are not “far right” but rather proven…

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