Sandgate residents will go to the polls on October 26 for the State Election.
Current Member for Sandgate, Stirling Hinchliffe, is retiring from politics, and there are five candidates running for the seat.
Bisma Asif, 27, is the Labor candidate. She lives in Sandgate with her husband and has an economics degree majoring in public policy from the University of Queensland.
She currently works as a policy advisor for Federal MP for Lilley, Anika Wells.
“The best part of the campaign has been getting out and talking to people,” Bisma said.
“We’ve been door knocking every day, we’ve knocked on 7000 doors and spoken to 3000 people face to face.
“The number one issue people have raised with me is cost of living.
“So, it’s been good to tell people about what the Labor state government has already done with the electricity rebates, and the other one that has been very popular is the 50c public transport fares.”
Despite the polls indicating a change of government in October, Bisma said she was only focused on one thing.
“The only poll that matters is the one on election day,” she said. “There’s a real risk we could see cuts to health and education, so I’m just doing the maximum I can do.”
LNP candidate, Chris Mangan, 61, has lived in Bracken Ridge for 22 years, and has spent his professional life in the defence industry, as well as transport, shipping, and logistics.
“There is no better place to live than the suburbs within the Sandgate electorate and there is so much potential for our future,” he said.
“But … under Labor we are experiencing housing, health, crime and cost of living crises. It’s clear that Labor has no plan to address what matters to residents.”
He added the LNP were campaigning on law-and-order issues and the cost of living.
“Everywhere I go, people talk about housing affordability, rising rents, record high ambulance ramping and how Labor’s cost of living crisis is forcing families to make difficult decisions about what they will go without to keep food on the table,” he said.
“I am increasingly hearing how much the youth crime crisis is hurting our community, with rampant car thefts, break-ins, and assaults.
“Every day I hear from more Sandgate locals who are locals who think Queensland is heading the wrong direction and needs a change.”
Meet the Candidates Shaping Sandgate’s Future
Greens candidate Rachel Kennedy, 18, works in hospitality and domestic and family violence advocacy. She lives on the edge of the Sandgate electorate.
She said she was going into politics because a better future was “not only possible but essential”.
“So many young people feel powerless and tune out of politics,” Rachel said.
“We’ve grown up in a world that saw school strikes for climate turn out millions in the street – only to have major parties tell them to shut up and go back to school.
“From the housing crisis, student debt to catastrophic levels of mental ill health, young people’s worries get dismissed and ignored.”
Rachel added cost of living pressures was the biggest issue facing Sandgate residents.
“This election, and always, the Greens have a powerful platform that fights for a future for all of us and provides a genuine alternative to the old parties who show us time and again that they aren’t interested in fighting for everyday people,” she said.
“Labor and the LNP have let big corporations and rich investors rip us off and pocket massive profits. Just in Queensland, Labor and the LNP have taken $25.3 million in donations from big corporations in the past decade, so of course they will never stand up for regular Queenslanders.
“I am running because Queenslanders deserve to know that it isn’t a waste to hope and that dread every young person feels when they think about their future isn’t an inevitability.”
Independent Democrats candidate Chris Simpson has lived in Sandgate since 2011. He has spent his career in construction and project management.
He said the time he also spent working in the coal and gas industry had shown him the importance of moving to renewable energy.
“Sustainability is an important issue, and youth training,” he said.
“The other issue I see as being important is having a 24/7 medical centre right here in the 4017.
“We’re about halfway between the Prince Charles emergency department and Redcliffe Hospital – Prince Charles is the second busiest ED in Queensland. Building a 24/7 medical centre here in the 4017 would take that pressure off those two hospitals.”
Chris said he was going into politics with the Democrats original slogan in mind – keep the b**tards honest.
“There’s a duopoly in our politics, the major parties make out like they’re in opposition to each other, but often they’re in lockstep,” he said.
“We need an alternative, we need people who are not career politicians, people with real life experience.”
Brett Finnis has registered to be on the ballot as an Independent candidate for Sandgate, but he did not return requests for an interview before publication.
The Queensland State election will be held on Saturday, 26 October. To find polling booth locations go to: www.ecq.qld.gov.au.
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