Television presenter and former senator Amanda Stoker has won a hotly contested LNP preselection battle for the state seat of Oodgeroo.
It comes just months after sitting MP Mark Robinson announced in parliament he would retire from politics at the 2024 state election, vacating the seat he has held for more than a decade.
Ms Stoker, who served as a Queensland senator from 2018 to 2022, beat ordained Anglican priest Daniel Hobbs to the role at a meeting of party faithful in Cleveland on Saturday.
She is the 10th candidate the LNP has preselected for next year’s election, joining Rebecca Young who will contest the seat of Redlands against Labor MP Kim Richards.
Labor is yet to announce a candidate for Oodgeroo. It is considered a safe conservative seat with Dr Robinson (LNP) claiming five consecutive election victories since 2009.
Ms Stoker said she felt “energised” to run for Oodgeroo – the electorate she calls home with her husband and kids – and was determined to make Redlands a better place to live.
“I am a mom who wants their kids to be able to aspire to have a great job and a local job,” she told Redland City News.
I want them to be able to have a hospital that they can count on, I want them to be safe in their community, and I want them to be able to afford a house.
“I want that for every family in our community.”
She held her final Sunday with Stoker program this week, telling her Sky News audience she would put it all on the line for residents in Oodgeroo.
Dr Robinson said Ms Stoker would bring a wealth of experience to the role given her extensive career in politics and as a barrister, media personality, wife and mum.
“I want to congratulate Amanda Stoker on her convincing win on the weekend, being chosen by local LNP members in the Cleveland area to become the LNP candidate for Oodgeroo at the 2024 Queensland election,” he said.
Opposition leader David Crisafulli said Ms Stoker had a proven track record of serving the Queensland public, having done so for several years as a senator.
He said the LNP would go into the next election as “underdogs” but there was a growing mood for change in Queensland.
“Amanda’s energy, resilience and experience will help thrust the issues that matter to Redlanders into the spotlight,” Mr Crisafulli said in a statement.
Ms Stoker wasted no time in hitting the campaign trail after her preselection win, attending a community meeting in Thornlands on Monday to hear from residents concerned about youth crime.
She said this was one of the key issues “causing Redlands pain”, along with the cost-of-living crisis, housing shortages and health issues.
“I want to see the government change so we can make a difference on those things, but also so that we can say with confidence that we are going to stomp down the corridor and get what this community needs from a government that cares about them,” Ms Stoker said.
