By outdoor-nature-child.com Max Chandler-Mather, the federal housing spokesperson for the Greens, argues that the Queensland election results serve as a warning for federal Labor: if Prime Minister Anthony Albanese spends the next six months battling his own party, he risks handing control over to Peter Dutton and the Liberals.
For years, Queensland has been somewhat of an anomaly in Australian politics, but the recent election could signal wider trends for the nation. The Liberal National Party achieved its first majority in nearly a decade, largely by gaining ground in regional areas traditionally held by Labor, including key seats in central and northern Queensland.
The Greens had set their sights on capturing several inner Brisbane seats, hoping to build on their success from the 2022 federal elections. However, they stumbled on election night, losing South Brisbane to Labor and falling short in other targeted districts.
In response to the results, Prime Minister Albanese noted that the outcome conveyed a clear message to Greens leader Adam Bandt. “Containing the Greens indicates that voters who elected them expect a progressive role, not one that blocks progress,” Albanese stated.
While analysts suggested that the Greens’ challenges—following minor setbacks in the Australian Capital Territory elections—reflected issues with the party’s federal strategy, Chandler-Mather contends that the election showed Labor has been misplacing its focus. “It’s frustrating to see Labor invest so much time and resources attacking us,” he said. “If they had managed to hold onto more seats in those regional areas, we could be looking at a minority government with us in a position of influence.”
He continued, “The key takeaway for federal Labor is that if the Prime Minister wants to spend the next six months battling the Greens, he will effectively hand the reins over to Peter Dutton.”
In the final stretch of the Queensland election campaign, Labor redirected resources towards Brisbane, where polls indicated they were gaining momentum. Following Steven Miles’ ascension to Premier, the government had notably shifted left, adopting several policies aligned with the Greens, including affordable public transport, higher mining royalties, and free school lunches.
Chandler-Mather suggested that these policies were instrumental in Labor’s recovery in Brisbane. “The main reason Labor salvaged so much of their vote there is that they embraced a large portion of the Greens’ platform,” he pointed out.
He urged Labor to consider a different approach to their relationship with the Greens: “If Labor wants to avoid a loss in the next federal election, they need to move away from their deep-seated hostility toward us and start collaborating. They achieved a successful compromise with us on housing last year, and we’re ready to do that again.”
Chandler-Mather asserted that claiming the election result illustrated the Greens’ unpopularity is misguided, especially given that Labor had adopted many of their policies. “Our initiatives are widely supported,” he emphasized. “That’s the message we’ve been trying to convey to federal Labor, but they still seem committed to a strategy of undermining us.”
Following the election, Labor sources expressed optimism about reclaiming federal Brisbane seats currently held by the Greens, including Chandler-Mather’s own electorate of Griffith. Reflecting on the Greens’ inability to secure additional seats, he acknowledged the need for improvement in how they communicate successes and the influence their MPs have on shifting policy discussions to the left.
Chandler-Mather noted, “Labor may believe this means the Greens are fading away, but our core voter base in targeted areas remains strong. In fact, we’ve seen an increase in volunteers this election compared to previous ones. The reality is that we just witnessed Labor’s most significant shift to the left in Queensland’s political history, primarily driven by efforts to counter the Greens.”
Michael Berkman, the Greens MP for Maiwar, seemed to have retained his seat despite initial concerns that he might lose it to the LNP. He said that Labor had effectively focused more resources on keeping the Greens at bay than on challenging the LNP. “Steven Miles just lost the government,” Berkman commented. “He lost in a contest where recognizing the real opponent and campaigning vigorously could have allowed him to hold onto power.”
When asked about Labor’s victory in South Brisbane, outgoing Premier Miles declined to comment on other parties, stating, “Those broader results are for you all to deliberate. I’ve always believed that delivering real results, particularly on environmental issues, comes from governing, which is why I’ve never backed the Greens.”