THE POLL BLUDGER
Queensland Legislative Assembly Election 2006

BURNETT
Nationals 2.6%

Burnett covers the central coast immediately north of Hervey Bay, surrounding but not including Bundaberg. It was one of the 16 original electorates proclaimed upon Queensland's establishment in 1859, although it was abolished in 1931 and re-created in 1960. Two National/Country members held the seat from 1960 to 2001, when Labor's Trevor Strong did very well to unseat incumbent Doug Slack in a two-horse race by 1.7 per cent. One Nation came within 2.3 per cent of victory in 1998 from 36.4 per cent of the primary vote, but were thwarted by the flow of Labor preferences to the Nationals. The 2004 election again saw only two candidates take the field, with a 4.3 per cent correction returning the seat to the Nationals fold.

Rob Messenger (left) was well known as an ABC Radio presenter before his election victory, and has enjoyed an even higher profile since. Messenger was assigned the role of Shadow Education and Arts Minister immediately after his election, and was moved to environment when the Coalition agreement was reached in September 2005. The previous March, Messenger tabled in parliament the latter from Bundaberg Hospital nurse Toni Morrison that blew the lid off the Doctor Death scandal, and was at first criticised for doing so by Health Minister Gordon Nuttall, Bundaberg MP Nita Cunningham and AMAQ president David Molloy. He has also found fame beyond the news pages through his engagement to Australian Idol finalist Tarni Stephens. In March, Stephens was involved in a confrontation with Cook MP Jason O'Brien at Parliament House, for which O'Brien was ordered to apologise by Peter Beattie. Labor candidate Denise Williams (right) is a former Burnett Shire councillor, but other than that biographical information is hard to come by, even on her campaign website.

Rob Messenger has enjoyed immense prestige for his role in uncovering the Bundaberg Hospital "Doctor Death" scandal, and he heavy-handedly drove the point home when Peter Beattie visited the hospital in the first week of the campaign. After struggling to get a word in amid Messenger's heckling ("you stand in a hospital where you have blood on your hands"), Beattie cut short a press conference called to announce that the hospital would receive a $41 million upgrade.

ASSESSMENT: Nationals retain