Queensland Labor is dangerously close to losing a prize state seat in a warning blow for new Premier Steven Miles months out from the October general election.
Labor was expected to hold the safe seats of Inala and Ipswich West vacated by former premier Annastacia Palaszczuk and Jim Madden in two by-elections.
LNP candidate Darren Zanow was on Saturday night looking set to win Ipswich West after Labor rival Wendy Bourne suffered a 15.2 per cent swing against her. Labor has held the seat for 19 out of 22 elections since 1960.
Polls have now closed in Queensland where millions voted on Saturday in local council elections and in the two state by-elections in what is the first popularity test for the new premier.
It was slightly better news in Inala, held by Palaszczuk before her resignation, where Labor’s Margie Nightingale suffered a 30 per cent swing against her with 31.5 per cent of the vote in and LNP rival Trang Yen had a 10.9 per cent swing in her favour.
It is unlikely Ms Yen’s swing will be enough to snatch the deep red Labor seat and Ms Nightingale will likely replace Palaszczuk as the next member for Inala. She currently leads with 37.4 per cent of the first preference vote.
Votes in Queensland council elections and two State by-elections on Saturday are shaping up to see Labor hold one crucial seat but lose another
LNP candidate for Ipswich West Darren Zanow looks like he will snatch the long-held Labor seat in what will be a wake-up call for Premier Miles
Labor’s Margie Nightingale suffered a 30 per cent swing against her in Inala but looks still likely to win Annastacia Palaszczuk’s old seat
Mr Miles was out on Saturday supporting his candidates in both seats, but was expecting to suffer a swing against Labor.
Mr Miles succeeded Ms Palaszczuk late last year after her sudden resignation.
LNP state leader David Crisafulli was also out on the hustings in Inala and Ipswich West on Saturday.
In Inala, LNP candidate Darren Zanow needed to overcome a 14.3 per cent margin to clinch victory in the Labor stronghold.
The LNP and One Nation had preferenced one another on their how-to-vote cards.
There was also voting in elections for all 77 local councils on Saturday.
Brisbane Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner is expected to retain his job, but there are predictions of a ‘Greens-slide’, with the minor party expected to pick up several of the 26 wards in Brisbane City Council.
Tom Tate is expected to also get another term as mayor of the Gold Coast, while former Liberal MP Andrew Laming is making a run for mayor of Redland City.
Ms Nightingale’s opponent Trang Yen was hopeful that she could pull of an upset though it was looking unlikely late on Saturday night
Millions of Queenslanders voted on Saturday (pictured: residents lining up at the Coorparoo State School during the elections)
Andrew Laming at the Cleveland State School in Moreton Bay during the elections
Fifteen councils have mayors running unopposed, including former state LNP leader Lawrence Springborg in Goondiwindi. A further 21 councils will have new mayors after the retirements of the incumbents.
Another former federal MP, George Christenson, is running for a council job in the central Queensland city of Mackay.
Earlier on Saturday there were complaints of long queues at a number of polling booths across the state.
An ECQ spokesperson said most queue times were ’15 minutes or less’.
‘Our team has confirmed we were required to replenish ballot papers at two polling booths this afternoon, and that ballot papers were securely delivered before stock was depleted at a small number of other booths,’ the spokesperson said.
‘Staffing is allocated to each booth according to expected voter turnout, which is analysed using data from recent Queensland and federal elections.’
The former premier made a rare public appearance on Saturday afternoon at the polls with Ms Nightingale, saying the day was about ‘new beginnings’.
Ms Palaszczuk offered the woman she hopes will replace her the ‘same advice my father gave me’ as she cast her by-election ballot.
‘I’m going to give her the same advice that my father gave me, and that is: Whoever comes through your door always comes there for a reason and to treat everyone with respect and to make sure that you really listen because they’ve come to you for help,’ she told the ABC.
‘So if Margie does that, she’ll be a very, very good local member.’
A blonde Annastacia Palaaszczuk made a rare public appearance since retiring from the state’s top job
Ms Palaszczuk retired from politics on her own terms late last year following months of speculation about her leadership.
Saturday’s by-election will be the first time in over 30 years that Inala won’t be held by someone with the last name Palaszczuk.
The seat was held by her father, Henry, since its creation in 1992. She took over the legacy when she entered the political arena in 2006.
Ms Nightingale, a former teacher, said she would focus on ‘progress’ should she win.
‘I’ll be looking at doing that and I understand what this community needs and I’m ready to listen and I’m really ready to do the hard work,’ the hopeful told the ABC.
Ms Palaszczuk wasn’t the only high profile visitor on the campaign trail.
Ms Nightingale was also joined on the hustings by treasurer Cameron Dick and Premier Steven Miles.
The pair laughed as the posed for pictures with Noodles the dog outside the Inala State School.
The battle for Inala, which Labor holds on 28.2 per cent margin, is just one of the two by-elections being held in Queensland on Saturday.
Both Inala and Ipswich West – which was prompted after Labor’s Jim Madden resigned to run for local council – are deep in traditional Labor heartland.
Ipswich West is held by Labor on a margin of 14.2 per cent.
Steven Miles helped Ms Nightingale win over last minute voters with Noodles the dog
Both results are being keenly anticipated as an early gauge of where the electorate is sitting ahead of the general election in October.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said a swing in the two by-elections would not necessarily spell the beginning of the end for Mr Miles.
‘We’ll wait and see when the election happens in October, I expect there’ll be a swing away from the government in these by elections today,’ Mr Albanese said.
‘That is what happens in by elections, normally, but I think that, you know, people will have a look at the LNP in Queensland very closely before October.’
Ahead of the polls opening, a Newspoll published by the n showed the LNP opposition was ahead of Labor 54 to 46 per cent after preferences.
If repeated at the general election in October, it would result in a loss of 18 Labor seats – four more than the LNP needs to win a majority.
State opposition leader David Crisafulli said issues such as youth crime and wait times for surgery and home ownership were on the top of people’s minds.
‘When I look at the challenges facing Queenslanders, I see things like the youth crime crisis that’s running out of control, I see things like a health system where people are waiting an inordinate amount of time for surgery and ambulance ramping is out of control,’ Mr Crisafulli told Sky News.
‘You’ve got a generation of young Queenslanders who don’t believe they’ll ever own their home – we’ve got the lowest homeownership rate in the country.
Queensland opposition leader David Crisafulli talking to voters on Saturday
Mr Miles has previously said it would be ‘very, very challenging,’ for Labor to be reelected for a fourth term.
The state is home to ‘s two biggest local councils, Brisbane and the Gold Coast.
Buoyed by their success at the 2022 federal election, the Greens are making a play for Brisbane City.
LNP Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner is expected to hold on to Brisbane’s top job, despite challenges from Labor’s Tracey Price and the high-profile Greens councillor Jonathan Sriranganathan.
On the Gold Coast, Tom Tate is expected to be returned as mayor, a position he has held since 2012.
Incumbent councillor Ryan Bayldon-Lumsden is seeking re-election despite facing a murder charge.
At least 1,010,000 Queenslanders had already cast their vote ahead of Saturday’s local government elections, with about 235,000 of the 440,000 postal votes returned as of Wednesday.
The Queensland Electoral Commission said 3.65 million people enrolled to vote, equating to 97.6 per cent of the state’s population eligible to vote.
About 45 per cent of Queenslanders had voted early at around 170 early voting centres statewide.
Voting booths opened at 8am and counting will begin at 6pm when polls close.
READ MORE: Former LNP candidate faces federal police in Brisbane
Vivian Lobo, 47, has been charged with providing electoral authorities with the wrong residential address when he ran for the LNP at the last Queensland election