by-election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, or a bypoll in India, is an election used to fill an office that has become vacant between general elections. A vacancy may arise as a result of an incumben ...

for the

electoral district of Inala The electoral district of Inala is an electoral district of the Legislative Assembly of Queensland in south-west Brisbane Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of A ...

in the

Legislative Assembly of Queensland The Legislative Assembly of Queensland is the sole chamber of the unicameral Parliament of Queensland established under the Constitution of Queensland. Elections are held every four years and are done by full preferential voting. The Assembly ...

was held on 16 March 2024 following the resignation of former Queensland Premier

Annastacia Palaszczuk Annastacia Palaszczuk ( , born 25 July 1969) is an Australian politician who served as the 39th premier of Queensland from 2015 to 2023. She held office as the leader of the Queensland branch of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) from 2012 unt ...

from parliament, which was announced on 10 December 2023 and took effect on 31 December 2023. The by-election was held on the same day as the Ipswich West by-election and the statewide local government elections.

Background

Seat details

The electoral district of Inala was established in 1990 following

one vote one value "One man, one vote" or "one vote, one value" is a slogan used to advocate for the principle of equal representation in voting. This slogan is used by advocates of democracy and political equality, especially with regard to electoral reforms like ...

electoral reforms by

Wayne Goss Wayne Keith Goss (26 February 1951 – 10 November 2014) was Premier of Queensland from 7 December 1989 until 19 February 1996, becoming the first Labor Premier of the state in over 32 years. Prior to entering politics, Goss was a solicitor, an ...

and was contested for the first time at the

1992 Queensland state election Elections were held in the Australian state of Queensland on 19 September 1992 to elect the 89 members of the state's Legislative Assembly. The Labor Party led by Wayne Goss was reelected for a second term with a strong majority government. T ...

. Throughout its existence, Inala has been a stronghold for the

Queensland Labor Party The Queensland Labor Party, officially known as the Australian Labor Party (State of Queensland) and commonly referred to as Queensland Labor or simply Labor, is the branch of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) in the state of Queensland. It has ...

. The seat was initially held by

Henry Palaszczuk Heinrich Palaszczuk (, Polish: ; born 12 January 1947) is a former Labor member of the Legislative Assembly of Queensland, and minister of the Beattie Government of Queensland. He was elected as the member for Archerfield in 1984, and held t ...

, who had transferred from Archerfield, and he served as Inala's Member of Parliament until the

2006 Queensland state election 6 (six) is the natural number following 5 and preceding 7. It is a composite number and the smallest perfect number. In mathematics A six-sided polygon is a hexagon, one of the three regular polygons capable of tiling the plane. A hexagon a ...

, where he was succeeded by his daughter

. Inala has consistently been a safe seat for Labor, often the safest for the party in the state. In the

2012 Queensland state election The 2012 Queensland state election was held on 24 March 2012 to elect all 89 members of the Legislative Assembly, a unicameral parliament. The Labor Party (ALP), led by Premier Anna Bligh, was defeated by the opposition Liberal National P ...

Inala was one of only 7 seats retained by Labor. Palaszczuk experienced a significant decline in her primary vote and a 14% swing against her in the

Two-party-preferred vote In Australian politics, the two-party-preferred vote (TPP or 2PP), is the result of an opinion poll or a projection of an election result where preferences are distributed to one of the two major parties, the Labor Party and the Liberal/Nati ...

, this being the first time since the seat's establishment where Labor did not obtain a majority in the primary vote. Her margin of victory was reduced to 6.2%. Palaszczuk was subsequently appointed as Labor leader and led the party back to government in the

2015 Queensland state election The 2015 Queensland state election was held on 31 January 2015 to elect all 89 members of the unicameral Legislative Assembly of Queensland. The centre-right Liberal National Party (LNP), led by Premier Campbell Newman, attempted to win a seco ...

. Under the Palaszczuk government, Inala reverted to its traditional status as a comfortably safe Labor seat. Palaszczuk was re-elected in Inala in 2015 with an increased majority of 25%, making it the second-safest seat in the state. Her lead was increased in the 2017 and 2020 elections to 26.1% and 28.1% respectively.

Demographics

Inala is located in the southwestern suburbs of

Brisbane Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...

. According to the

2021 Australian Census The 2021 Australian census, simply called the 2021 Census, was the eighteenth national Census of Population and Housing in Australia. The 2021 Census took place on 10 August 2021, and was conducted by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS). ...

, the electorate has a median age of 34, which is lower than both the state and national averages. 18.8% of the electorate hold a

Bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Medieval Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six years ...

, which is lower than the state and national averages. The average personal weekly income is $659. The electorate has a racially diverse demographic, including a significant percentage of

Vietnamese Australians Vietnamese Australians () are Australians of Vietnamese descent. Vietnamese Australians are one of the largest groups within the global Vietnamese diaspora. At the 2021 census, 334,781 people stated that they had Vietnamese ancestry (whether ...

. Approximately 15.6 percent of households speak the Vietnamese language, and 14.4 percent of residents identify as having Vietnamese ancestry.

Previous results

Candidates

Labor

William Bowe from the ''Poll Bludger'' and the "Feeding the Chooks" column in ''

The Australian ''The Australian'', with its Saturday edition ''The Weekend Australian'', is a broadsheet daily newspaper published by News Corp Australia since 14 July 1964. As the only Australian daily newspaper distributed nationally, its readership of b ...

'', suggested Jon Persley, Annastacia Palaszczuk's deputy chief of staff, as a potential successor candidate for the 2024 Inala state by-election. However, concerns arose about representation due to the multicultural demographics of the electorate, a point highlighted by ''The Australian''. In January 2024, Persley told

that he would not be contesting for preselection due to Labor's gender quota rules being a 'big factor'. Margie Nightingale, a former teacher and current policy adviser to

Treasurer A treasurer is a person responsible for the financial operations of a government, business, or other organization. Government The treasury of a country is the department responsible for the country's economy, finance and revenue. The treasure ...

Cameron Dick Cameron Robert Dick (born 25 April 1967) is an Australian politician and member of the Labor Party who was the 36th Deputy Premier of Queensland from 2023 to 2024, 51st Treasurer of the state of Queensland from 2020 to 2024, and Minister for Tr ...

, won the preselection instead and was elected as the new MP for Inala at the by-election.

Results

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Inala state by-election, 2024 2024 elections in Australia 2024 in Queensland March 2024 in Australia 2024Inala