REMEMBER WHEN

GOLD COAST BULLETIN Monday, April 23, 2012

ACCUSATIONS, claims, counterclaims and last-minute deal switches followed the exclusive Bulletin Newspoll which revealed millionaire businessman Tom Tate was the clear frontrunner to become Gold Coast mayor.

Mayoral contender councillor Susie Douglas claimed she had been offered an inducement by Mr Tate’s camp to run for the Senate instead of the mayoralty.

The Tate camp denied the claim and said it was “no secret in the LNP” that Cr Douglas wanted to be a senator – a claim she strongly denied.

Cr Douglas referred the alleged offer to the Electoral Commission of Queensland, which ruled the offer was not an inducement.

Federal politician became involved in the back-biting, with Liberal MP Stuart Robert describing Cr Douglas’s lastminute alliance with former ALP member Eddy Sarroff as “a grubby political deal”.

The Bulletin’s exclusive poll – conducted by Newspoll, a highly respected, independent market survey company – revealed Mr Tate was set to take 38 per cent of the primary vote.

He was 15 points ahead of the next closest candidate Mr Sarroff on 23 per cent, with Cr Douglas third on 18 per cent.

In the wake of the poll Cr Douglas also went on the offensive, saying she was “pleading with the public” to vote for anyone but Mr Tate because he lacked integrity and “has no idea what he’s doing”. Cr Tate ultimately won the 2012 election and remains in office today.