2006 Gaven state by-election

August 2019 An Australian by-election was held for the Legislative Assembly of Queensland district of Gaven on 1 April 2006. It was triggered by the resignation of sitting Labor member Robert Poole.January 2020 The by-election resulted in the Labor Party losing the seat to National Party candidate Alex Douglas.January 2020 Background Robert Poole first came to parliament at the 2001 state election by winning the newly created seat of Gaven. He was subsequently re-elected at the 2004 state election. During his second term, Poole attracted criticism for the amount of time he spent in Thailand, where his wife and children lived. Things came to a head in February 2006 when Poole announced that he'd be spending three months in Thailand to recover from knee surgery.Gaven MP urged to get on with job ABC 20 February 2006 http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2006/02/20/1573914.htm https://archive.today/20120723043636/http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2006/02/20/1573914.htm dead 23 July 2012 The Opposition demanded a by-election, but Premier Peter Beattie said he was prepared to wait until the beginning of April for Poole to return home.Call Gaven by-election now, Beattie told 27 February 2006 ABC http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2006/02/27/1579036.htm https://web.archive.org/web/20110216230128/http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2006/02/27/1579036.htm dead 16 February 2011 Poole, not prepared to return home early from his trip, announced his decision to resign his seat on 28 February 2006.The World Today Qld Labor faces by-election following controversial resignation http://www.abc.net.au/worldtoday/content/2006/s1580387.htm Candidates Labor preselected Phil Gray as their candidate to defend the seat. Gray had previously been campaign manager to outgoing member Robert Poole.MP cloud despite 'sorry' letter 6 December 2008 The Gold Coast Bulletin http://www.goldcoast.com.au/article/2008/12/06/29201_gold-coast-news.html The Liberal Party—who had been the Labor Party's chief opponent in Gaven at the 2004 election—did not contest the by-election, instead deferring to the National Party due to the coalition agreement that the two parties not stand candidates against each other in the same seat. This attracted criticism from some from commentators who believed the Liberal Party was better placed to win the suburban seat than the rural-centric Nationals. The National Party endorsed general practitioner Alex Douglas as its candidate. Results National Party candidate Alex Douglas won the seat from Labor Party. It marked the third by-election loss for Labor during the parliamentary term, following on from the 2005 losses in Chatsworth and Redcliffe. Gaven state by-election, 2006 2006 Gaven by-election Electoral Commission of Queensland http://www.ecq.qld.gov.au/elections/state/gaven06/results/district30.html dead https://web.archive.org/web/20080906150346/https://www.ecq.qld.gov.au/elections/state/gaven06/results/district30.html 2008-09-06 2004 general election: Gaven Electoral Commission of Queensland http://www.ecq.qld.gov.au/2004/district30.html dead https://web.archive.org/web/20091002185649/http://www.ecq.qld.gov.au/2004/district30.html 2009-10-02 Alex Douglas Nationals QLD 11,012 42.51 +42.51 Phil Gray Labor QLD 9,517 36.74 −10.59 Glen Ryman Greens QLD 2,036 7.86 −0.33 Daren Riley 1,982 7.65 +7.65 Phil Connolly 683 2.64 −3.14 Steve Moir One Nation 672 2.59 +2.59 25,902 96.44 +0.66 956 3.56 −0.66 26,858 83.55 −7.14 Alex Douglas Nationals QLD 11,807 53.35 +53.35 Phil Gray Labor QLD 10,324 46.65 −8.31 Nationals QLD Labor QLD N/A Aftermath Alex Douglas's stint in parliament would prove to be a short one. A general election was called by Premier Peter Beattie later that year where Labor recouped the seat of Gaven, with Phil Gray once again their candidate. However, the tables turned again at 2009 state election when Alex Douglas, running as a candidate for the newly formed Liberal National Party, defeated Gray in their third contest against one another. See also List of Queensland state by-elections References Category:2006 elections in Australia Category:Queensland state by-elections Category:2000s in Queensland