Back-up candidates aplenty as Labor rallies
WITH 24 hours to go and no Labor candidates in four Gold Coast seats, the Bulletin took to the streets to help out.
Within half an hour of trawling MP John Paul Langbroek’s LNP stronghold of Surfers Paradise, we had filled the quota.
At The Envy Hotel, Alan Calder said he was free if needed on election day, November 25.
“I’m a Labor man, been a member for 40 years,” he said holding his beer.
The former school principal said if he got the call up from Ms Palaszczuk he didn’t feel too good about the $1.01 odds bookies have on Mr Langbroek to win.
Further along Niecon Plaza, financial planning office worker Alex Jeffrey said she would happy to be Labor’s woman in Surfers Paradise.
“(Langbroek’s) quite old,” said Ms Jeffrey, 22, as she gazed at a photo of him on a flyer. But she quickly ruled herself out because she’s a British citizen.
However, her smoko partner, Lindley Schneider, 18, said she would be happy to help. “It depends on work and stuff. I could make weekends, or afternoons.”
At the Broadbeach Tavern, concreter Jim Brown said he could be the Labor candidate – if the fish aren’t biting on election day.
“Depends on how many fish I’m catching down at The Spit.”
At 6pm yesterday, the Labor Party finally forwarded their candidates for the seats of Surfers Paradise, Mermaid, Mudgeeraba and Broadwater.
Despite their pedigrees, Alan, Alex, Lindley and Jim weren’t on the list.
Instead, Labor went for police officer Senior Sergeant Peter Flori, brother of alleged whistleblower Rick Flori, in Broadwater; plasterer Anthony Walker in Surfers Paradise; former Surfers Paradise candidate Josh BlundellThornton in Mermaid; and University of Queensland international relations student, Paul Taylor in Mudgeeraba.