Elections were held in the

Australian state The states and territories are federated administrative divisions in Australia, ruled by regional governments that constitute the second level of governance between the federal government and local governments. States are self-governing ...

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , establishe ...

on 22 October 1983 to elect the 82 members of the state's Legislative Assembly. The election resulted in a sixth consecutive term of office for the National Party under

Joh Bjelke-Petersen Sir Johannes Bjelke-Petersen (13 January 191123 April 2005), known as Joh Bjelke-Petersen, was a conservative Australian politician. He was the longest-serving and longest-lived premier of Queensland, holding office from 1968 to 1987, during ...

. It was the tenth election win for the National Party in Queensland since it first came to office in 1957.

Background

The election was triggered when a number of

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

MLAs, including Welfare Services Minister

Terry White Terrence Anthony "Terry" White (born 3 September 1936) is an Australian pharmacist, businessman, and former politician. White achieved notoriety when, as Queensland state leader of the Liberal Party he terminated the longstanding coalition agr ...

, crossed the floor of the Parliament to support a

Labor Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the la ...

motion to create an Expenditure Review Committee. White was sacked from cabinet for supporting the motion. In response, he launched a party-room coup against Liberal leader and deputy premier Llewellyn Edwards and became Liberal leader with Angus Innes as his deputy. In the normal course of events, White would have succeeded Edwards as deputy premier. However, White and Innes' progressive leanings didn't sit well with Bjelke-Petersen, and he refused to make White deputy premier. In response, White tore up the Coalition agreement and led the Liberals to the crossbench. However, Bjelke-Petersen prorogued Parliament ahead of the election, allowing him to govern for nine weeks without fear of being toppled on the floor of the legislature. Labor, under the leadership of new leader Keith Wright, hoped to make use of the division between the conservative parties to make gains, while the Liberals hoped to win enough seats to force the Nationals back into Coalition under more favourable terms. The Nationals sought to gain enough seats to form a majority government in their own right. Indeed, Bjelke-Petersen directed his campaign mainly at right-leaning Liberal voters, suggesting that the alternative was a Labor government propped up by White's Liberals.

Key dates

Results

The Nationals were returned to office, one seat short of a majority. Labor also made gains, although not enough to challenge Bjelke-Petersen's continued dominance. The Liberals were decimated, falling from 22 seats to a rump of eight seats. Of the Liberals who crossed the floor, only White and Innes were reelected.

Seats changing hands

* Members listed in italics did not recontest their seats. * Bob Moore was elected as a Liberal in the previous election, but changed to the National party in 1983.

Post-election pendulum

Aftermath

After the election, Bjelke-Petersen openly invited Liberal MLAs to defect to the Nationals. On 25 October, two Liberal MLAs,

Brian Austin Brian Douglas Austin (born 22 March 1943) is an Australian politician and Minister of Health (1980–1983 and 1983 - 1986) and Minister for Finance and Minister Assisting the Premier and Treasurer (1987 - 1989) and who represented the state s ...

( Wavell) and

Don Lane Don Lane (born Morton Donald Isaacson, 13 November 1933 – 22 October 2009) was an American-born talk show host and singer, best known for his television career in Australia, especially for hosting ''Tonight with Don Lane'' and '' The Don Lane ...

(

Merthyr Merthyr Tydfil (; cy, Merthyr Tudful ) is the main town in Merthyr Tydfil County Borough, Wales, administered by Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council. It is about north of Cardiff. Often called just Merthyr, it is said to be named after Tydf ...

) took up Bjelke-Petersen's offer and joined the Nationals. This gave them 43 seats, a majority of two—the first time that the Nationals had governed in majority at any level in Australia. This left only six Liberals, and marked the end of Terry White's leadership and Angus Innes' deputy leadership. Former leader Sir William Knox (

Nundah Nundah (previously called German Station) is an inner suburb in the City of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. It contains the neighbourhood of Toombul. In the , Nundah had a population of 12,141 people. Prior to European settlement, Nundah was i ...

) was returned to lead what remained of the party. Labor had performed well, but not well enough, especially in North Queensland. Still, Labor strategists hoped that they had recovered enough seats to put them within striking distance of winning in

1986 The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 **Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles. **Spain and Portugal enter ...

References

{{Queensland elections Elections in Queensland 1983 elections in Australia 1980s in Queensland October 1983 events in Australia