Seats lost, regional voters ‘betrayed’ in revamp
Two voters will disappear as a state literally redraws the political map in a move branded the “ultimate betrayal” of regional voters.
Queensland borders will be redrawn for 48 electorates, creating two new seats in the populous southeast – Springfield and Caboolture.
A major overhaul of the state’s 93 constituencies will see the loss of two seats, both currently held by opposition parties, while dozens more are planned to be renamed.
Stretton, the southern seat of Brisbane that has been held by Labor for more than a decade, will fall into the hands of neighboring voters.
The seat of Hill in north Queensland, held by Katter’s Australian Party, will also be scrapped in a move seen as a slap in the face to voters in the region.
Hill will be absorbed into surrounding seats, sending MP Shane Knuth into the political desert for a third term.
The political stalwart, who has also previously represented the Nationals and the Liberal National Party, is set to lose his seat again in a boundary change, following the earlier abolition of the Charters Towers and Dalrymple electorates.
Katter’s Australian Party state leader Robbie Katter said the Queensland Redistribution Commission’s voter review under LNP premier David Crisafulli was an insult to the people of north Queensland.
“It’s quite disappointing for a prime minister to leave North Queensland and go to the safety of Broadwater on the Gold Coast and live in Brisbane,” Mr Katter told AAP, referring to Mr Crisafulli.
“He betrayed the people of North Queensland.
“It hurts when someone opposes himself like that. He’s just indulging in these political games. It’s just dirty politics.”
Opposition Leader Steven Miles described the process as “selfish politics” that would take Queensland back to the Joh Bjelke-Petersen gerrymander years.
The system in the 1970s and 1980s helped Mr Bjelke-Petersen win a majority of seats by giving more weight to National Party-friendly voters despite having a smaller percentage of the overall popular vote.
“Queenslanders cannot trust this process when the integrity of the Redistribution Commission is undermined by the selfish policies of the LNP,” Mr Miles said.
“Queenslanders cannot trust that the redrawn borders were drawn in good faith… and that the LNP had no influence on the process.”
He said Labor would analyze the draft report and voice its concerns to the committee.
Mr Crisafulli said on Wednesday he had not had time to read or consider the new-look electoral map.
“This is an independent decision. I haven’t had a chance to look at it,” the Prime Minister said.
19 seats bearing the names of historical figures will also be given an appearance appropriate to the geographical region.
The reapportionment commission argued that the report was “extremely complex and time-consuming.”
“These changes were not made lightly, especially where districts were proposed to be incorporated into surrounding districts,” said Chairman Gregory Koppenol.
The legally required redistribution is the first for the state since 2017, when the parliament expanded from 89 seats.
The redrawn map will be used in the 2028 state elections.
