ALP 12.9%
Incumbent MP
Curtis Pitt, since 2009.
Geography
Far North Queensland. Mulgrave covers the Queensland coast between Deeral and the southern suburbs of Cairns, including Gordonvale, Edmonton, White Rock, Woree and Bayview Heights. Mulgrave covers the Aboriginal Shire of Yarrabah and parts of the Cairns local government area.
Redistribution
Mulgrave shifted north, gaining Bayview Heights and Woree from Cairns, and losing southern parts of the seat, as far as Innisfail, to Hill. These changes did not shift the seat’s margins substantially.
History
The seat of Mulgrave has existed continuously since 1950. For most of that period it was dominated by the Country/National Party. Since 1989 it has been dominated by the ALP, although the seat has changed hands on a number of occasions.
The seat had been held by Country or National Party MPs continuously for the length of the party’s term in government from 1957 to 1989.
In 1989 the seat was won by the ALP’s Warren Pitt. He was re-elected in 1992 and briefly became a minister in the Labor government in early 1995, before losing his seat to the National Party’s Naomi Wilson at the 1995 election.
Wilson briefly served as a minister in 1998 before losing Mulgrave to One Nation’s Charles Rappolt at the 1998 election. Rappolt’s time in the Parliament was brief. He faced attacks over domestic violence allegations, and he resigned in late 1998.
At the 1998 by-election Warren Pitt won back Mulgrave, giving Peter Beattie a majority in the Legislative Assembly.
Pitt was re-elected in 2001. In early 2004 he was reappointed to the ministry. He served in the ministry until his retirement in 2009.
At the 2009 election Mulgrave was won by Pitt’s son Curtis Pitt. The younger Pitt was re-elected in 2012 and 2015.
Candidates
- Karina Samperi (Liberal National)
- Curtis Pitt (Labor)
- Sue Bertuch (One Nation)
- Carmel Murray (Greens)
Assessment
Mulgrave is a safe Labor seat.
2015 election result
| Candidate | Party | Votes | % | Swing | Redist |
| Curtis Pitt | Labor | 13,605 | 51.1 | +16.6 | 50.7 |
| Robyn Quick | Liberal National | 8,334 | 31.3 | -0.7 | 31.6 |
| Christian Wolff | Palmer United Party | 2,821 | 10.6 | +10.6 | 10.5 |
| Henry Boer | Greens | 1,021 | 3.8 | +0.3 | 4.4 |
| Damian Byrnes | Independent | 867 | 3.3 | +3.3 | 2.3 |
| Others | 0.5 | ||||
| Informal | 618 | 2.3 |
2015 two-party-preferred result
| Candidate | Party | Votes | % | Swing | Redist |
| Curtis Pitt | Labor | 15,516 | 62.8 | +11.6 | 62.9 |
| Robyn Quick | Liberal National | 9,205 | 37.2 | -11.6 | 37.1 |
| Exhausted | 1,927 | 7.2 |
Booth breakdown
Booths in Mulgrave have been divided into three areas: central, north and south.
The ALP won a majority of the two-party-preferred vote in all three areas, ranging from 62% in the south to 67% in the centre and north.
The Palmer United Party came third, with a vote ranging from 9.5% in the north to 11.2% in the centre.
| Voter group | PUP prim % | ALP 2PP % | Total votes | % of votes |
| North | 9.5 | 67.3 | 5,706 | 21.9 |
| Central | 11.2 | 66.8 | 4,752 | 18.2 |
| South | 10.8 | 62.1 | 2,795 | 10.7 |
| Other votes | 10.7 | 59.5 | 12,845 | 49.2 |
Election results in Mulgrave at the 2015 QLD state election
Click on the ‘visible layers’ box to toggle between two-party-preferred votes and Palmer United Party primary votes.
I have heard whispers that Curtis Pitt may consider contesting Leichhardt at the next federal election, may not amount to anything but worth keeping an eye on anyway.
He wouldn’t beat Entsch but if Entsch retired, Pitt could definitely win that seat.
Day 1 prediction – ALP retain, but compulsory preferences make it closer than 2015
ALP retain
Should be an easy ALP retain but keep an eye on it for the size of the swing. Hard one to get a feel of.
Labor retain and one of Labor’s best sitting candidates but do not be surprised if the PHON vote is quite big.