2020 Groom by-election

The 2020 Groom by-election was held on 28 November 2020 to elect the next Member of Parliament for the division of Groom in the House of Representatives. The by-election was triggered following the resignation of incumbent Liberal National MP John McVeigh on 18 September 2020.[1]

2020 Groom by-election
28 November 2020
Division of Groom (QLD) in the House of Representatives
Registered108,550
Turnout81.66%
  First party Second party
 
Candidate Garth Hamilton Chris Meibusch
Party Liberal National Labor
Percentage 67.19% 32.81%
The Division of Groom in Queensland
MP before election

John McVeigh
Liberal National

 Elected MP

Garth Hamilton
Liberal National

Background
See also: Electoral results for the Division of Groom

The electorate of Groom, like the Division of Darling Downs before it, is a safe conservative seat. Since its foundation in 1984, it has always been held by the Country/National, Liberal or, since 2010, Liberal National parties. Groom has been represented by four MPs: the first, Tom McVeigh, was a Nationals MP and father of the outgoing MP John McVeigh. McVeigh's appointment as Queensland Agent-General in London led to his resignation, with both the National and Liberal parties contesting the ensuing by-election.[2] With a 20.1% drop in the Nationals primary vote following the failed Joh for Canberra campaign, the Liberal candidate Bill Taylor, a former naval officer, was elected and served until his retirement at the 1998 federal election.

Taylor was succeeded by Ian Macfarlane, who served as a minister in the Howard and Abbott Governments. Macfarlane remained aligned to the federal Liberal Party following the merger of the Queensland Liberals and Nationals in 2008, but in 2015 attempted to defect to the federal Nationals after being dropped from cabinet.[3] The move was blocked by party executives,[4] and Macfarlane opted to retire at the 2016 election.

The outgoing MP, John McVeigh, was elected to federal parliament in 2016, having previously served in the Legislative Assembly of Queensland as the member for Toowoomba South. McVeigh's pre-selection triggered the 2016 Toowoomba South state by-election, with the seat being retained by the Liberal Nationals. Despite serving as the Toowoomba branch president of the Young Nationals in the 1980s, McVeigh sat with the federal Liberals upon his election.

Two-party-preferred vote in Groom, 2010–2019
Election2010201320162019
 Liberal National68.53%66.47%65.31%70.48%
 Labor31.47%33.53%34.69%29.52%

Key dates

Key dates in relation to the by-election are:[5]

  • Monday, 26 October 2020 – Issue of writ
  • Monday, 2 November 2020 – Close of electoral rolls (8pm)
  • Thursday, 5 November 2020 – Close of nominations (12 noon)
  • Friday, 6 November 2020 – Declaration of nominations (12 noon)
  • Wednesday, 11 November 2020 – Start of early voting
  • Saturday, 28 November 2020 – Polling day (8am to 6pm)
  • Wednesday, 2 December 2020 – Declaration of result
  • Friday, 11 December 2020 – Last day for receipt of postal votes
  • Wednesday, 3 February 2021 – Last day for return of writs

Preselection

Liberal National

Matt Canavan, a Senator for Queensland, had publicly expressed interest in seeking Liberal National preselection.[6][7] On 28 September, Canavan—who sits with the federal National party room—confirmed he would not stand after the Groom branch of the Liberal Nationals voted to defer a decision on whether the seat would remain aligned with the federal Liberal Party.[8]

Preselection for the Liberal National Party was to be held on 25 October, and was expected to be contested by eight candidates:[9]

Prior to the preselection, van Gend's candidacy was endorsed by several prominent conservatives, including Canavan, Tasmanian senator Eric Abetz, former Nationals leader and Deputy Prime Minister John Anderson and columnist Miranda Devine.[10] Councillor Vonhoff was believed to have to the backing of Prime Minister Scott Morrison and former Groom MP Ian Macfarlane.[11]

On 25 October 2020, Garth Hamilton won the preselection and was the LNP candidate for the by-election.[12]

Labor

Lawyer Chris Meibusch was preselected by Labor to contest the by-election.[13] Meibusch previously contested the seat in the 2007 and 2010 federal elections but was unsuccessful.

Greens

The Australian Greens decided to not contest the by-election.[14] It was the first federal by-election the party had not contested since Warringah in 1994.[15]

Candidates

Four candidates nominated to contest the by-election.[16]

Candidates (4) in ballot paper order
Party Candidate Background
  Sustainable Australia Sandra Jephcott Veterinarian and farmer.[17]
  Liberal Democrats Craig Farquharson Toowoomba vape store owner.[18]
  Liberal National Garth Hamilton Businessman and mining engineer.[12]
  Labor Chris Meibusch Lawyer and local environmental activist.[13]

Results
2020 Groom by-election[19]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal National Garth Hamilton 51,534 59.83 +6.49
Labor Chris Meibusch 23,500 27.28 +8.62
Sustainable Australia Sandra Jephcott 6,716 7.80 +7.80
Liberal Democrats Craig Farquharson 4,391 5.10 +5.10
Total formal votes 86,141 97.18 +0.38
Informal votes 2,504 2.82 −0.38
Turnout 88,645 81.66 −11.38
Two-party-preferred result
Liberal National Garth Hamilton 57,875 67.19 −3.29
Labor Chris Meibusch 28,266 32.81 +3.29
Liberal National hold Swing−3.29

See also

References
  1. Chen, David; Robinson, Lucy (18 September 2020). "Federal LNP MP John McVeigh resigns from Groom electorate in Toowoomba". ABC Southern Queensland. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 18 September 2020.
  2. "McVeigh 'for London'". The Canberra Times. 5 December 1987. Retrieved 30 September 2020.
  3. "Liberal MP Ian Macfarlane defects to Nationals in shock move against Malcolm Turnbull". Sydney Morning Herald. 2 December 2015. Retrieved 30 September 2020.
  4. Anderson, Stephanie. "Ian Macfarlane blocked from moving to Nationals by LNP executive". ABC News. Australia. Retrieved 30 September 2020.
  5. "Key dates in federal by-election for Groom". 7News.com.au. 8 October 2020. Retrieved 9 October 2020.
  6. Bechwati, Jennifer (23 September 2020). "Senator weighs up move to lower house". 7News.com.au. Retrieved 11 October 2020.
  7. "Nationals Senator Matt Canavan 'not ruling out' stepping down into Lower House seat". Sky News Australia. 24 September 2020. Retrieved 11 October 2020.
  8. Killoran, Matthew (28 September 2020). "Libs win battle for Groom ... for now". The Courier-Mail. Retrieved 11 October 2020.
  9. Walker, Helen (9 October 2020). "Groom by-election to be held on November 28". Queensland Country Life. Retrieved 11 October 2020.
  10. Smee, Ben (21 October 2020). "'All the right causes': Miranda Devine and Coalition senators back extreme Queensland candidate". The Guardian Australia. Retrieved 21 October 2020.
  11. "Marriage equality opponent David van Gend among frontrunners for Groom LNP preselection". ABC News. 22 October 2020. Retrieved 23 October 2020.
  12. Gillespie, Tom; Loftus, Tobi (25 October 2020). "LNP members vote for Garth Hamilton in Groom preselection battle ahead of by-election". The Toowoomba Chronicle. News Corp Australia. Retrieved 25 October 2020.
  13. "Chris Meibusch". Queensland Labor. Retrieved 6 November 2020.
  14. Newton, Matthew. "Who's in and who's out of the Groom by-election". Queensland Times.
  15. Bonham, Kevin (11 November 2020). "Groom: Australia's Most Boring By-Election?". Dr Kevin Bonham. Retrieved 14 November 2020.
  16. "2020 Groom by-election". Australian Electoral Commission. Retrieved 6 November 2020.
  17. "2020 Groom by-election - 28 November". Sustainable Australia Party. Retrieved 6 November 2020.
  18. Loftus, Toby (4 November 2020). "Vape King set to run at Groom by-election for Liberal Democrats". The Toowoomba Chronicle. Retrieved 4 November 2020.
  19. "Tally Room: 2020 Groom By-election". Australian Electoral Commission. Retrieved 25 December 2020.
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