Queensland State Election

Queensland Premier Anna Bligh today asked Governor Penny Wensley to dissolve parliament and call an election for 21 March 2009.

Currently, the Australian Labor Party holds 58 of Queensland’s 89 seats.  The opposition Liberal National Party holds 25 seats, One Nation and the Greens both hold one seat each, and there are four Independents and. Forty-five seats are needed to form government.

Anna Bligh has been premier since 2005, when she succeeded the retiring Peter Beattie.  Labor has held government in Queensland since 1998.

This will be the first election contested by the newly-merged Liberal National Party of Queensland, formed in 2008 by the Queensland Nationals and Liberals.  They are led by Lawrence Springborg.

Queensland is unique among Australian states in having a unicameral parliamentary system, meaning there is only one house of parliament. All members sit in the Legislative Assembly.