Fairfax in the 2013 Australian federal election

2013 Australian federal election (Fairfax)
7 September 2013
Division of Fairfax (Qld) in the House of Representatives
Registered95,411[1]
Turnout93.41% ( 0.63)
  First party Second party
 
Candidate Ted O'Brien Clive Palmer
Party Liberal National Palmer United
Primary vote 34,959 22,409
Percentage 41.32% 26.49%
Swing 8.13 26.49
TCP 49.97% 50.03%
TCP swing 7.03 50.03
  Third party Fourth party
 
Candidate Elaine Hughes David Knobel
Party Labor Greens
Primary vote 15,429 7,046
Percentage 18.24% 8.33%
Swing 9.07 9.67
MP before election

Alex Somlyay
Liberal National

Elected MP

Clive Palmer
Palmer United

An election in the Queensland electorate of Fairfax took place on 7 September 2013 as part of the 2013 Australian federal election.[2][3] Incumbent Liberal National Party (LNP) MP Alex Somlyay did not seek re-election.[4][5]

In an upset victory, billionaire Clive Palmer – contesting as the leader of his newly-formed Palmer United Party (PUP) – defeated LNP candidate Ted O'Brien by a margin of 53 votes in the two-candidate-preferred (TCP) count.[6][7] The result took almost eight weeks to be confirmed, with the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) conducting the longest recount in federal election history.[8][9]

Background

Main article: Division of Fairfax

Alex Somlyay had held Fairfax for the Liberal Party since 1990, when he defeated the National Party following the retirement of incumbent member Evan Adermann.[10] His hold on the seat had only been seriously challenged twice – the first time in 1998, when there was a 13.25% TCP swing against him, and the other in 2007, when there was a 9.4% TCP swing.[11][12]

Following the 2010 federal election, Somlyay confirmed his plans to retire from parliament in 2013.[13] Although there was an expectation that LNP campaign director James McGrath would contest preselection for Fairfax, he instead sought to run as the candidate for the neighbouring seat of Fisher.[14] After that was unsuccessful, McGrath contested preselection for a position on the LNP's Senate ticket, which he won.[14] In November 2012, businessman Ted O'Brien won the LNP's preselection for Fairfax, defeating former national rugby union team coach John Connolly.[15]

In April 2013, billionaire and former LNP life member Clive Palmer formed the Palmer United Party (PUP) and announced he would contest Fairfax.[16]

Candidates

Candidates are listed in the order they appeared on the ballot.[17][18]

Party Candidate Background
  One Nation Mike Holt CEO of Restore Australia[19]
  Independent Trudy Byrnes Business consultant[20]
  Palmer United Clive Palmer Businessman and Palmer United Party founder
  Liberal National Ted O'Brien Liberal candidate for Brisbane in 2007
  Family First Angela Meyer Piano training business owner[21]
  Labor Elaine Hughes Lifeline crisis line supervisor[5]
  Greens David Knobel Community worker[22]
  Katter's Australian Ray Sawyer Dance school operator[5]

Campaign

The Family First Party recommended preferencing Labor above the LNP because of the issue of same-sex marriage, which Labor candidate Elaine Hughes indicated her opposition to.[21]

Prior to the election, The Tally Room predicted that O'Brien "should have no trouble defeating Labor, and despite Clive Palmer's obnoxious claims, there is no evidence that Palmer is a serious threat to the LNP's hold on the seat".[23]

No electorate opinion polling for Fairfax was published, although Roy Morgan Research said it predicted Palmer "could" win the seat.[24][25] An exit poll released by Ten News at 4pm AEST on election day showed the PUP winning 9.5% of the vote in Queensland.[26][27]

Results

This section is an excerpt from Results of the 2013 Australian federal election in Queensland § Fairfax.[edit]
2013 Australian federal election: Fairfax[28]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal National Ted O'Brien 34,959 41.32 −8.13
Palmer United Clive Palmer 22,409 26.49 +26.49
Labor Elaine Hughes 15,429 18.24 −9.07
Greens David Knobel 7,046 8.33 −9.67
Katter's Australian Ray Sawyer 1,623 1.92 +1.92
Family First Angela Meyer 1,416 1.67 −3.57
Independent Trudy Byrnes 1,016 1.20 +1.20
One Nation Mike Holt 709 0.84 +0.84
Total formal votes 84,607 94.88 −0.09
Informal votes 4,569 5.12 +0.09
Turnout 89,176 93.41 +0.63
Notional two-party-preferred count
Liberal National Ted O'Brien 52,184 61.68 +4.73
Labor Elaine Hughes 32,423 38.32 −4.73
Two-candidate-preferred result
Palmer United Clive Palmer 42,330 50.03 +50.03
Liberal National Ted O'Brien 42,277 49.97 −7.03
Palmer United gain from Liberal National  

Aftermath

Election night

The indicative two-candidate-preferred count provided by the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) on election night was between the LNP and Labor.[29] By 8:10pm AEST, ABC election analyst Antony Green said the count would instead be between the LNP and the PUP.[30] Palmer said he expected his party to win Fairfax and Fisher.[30]

Initial count

After the AEC realigned the TCP count, Palmer emerged with a narrow lead over O'Brien.[24] It was also revealed that a sorting error during election night meant 760 votes were recorded as being from the Buderim polling booth, instead of Coolum Beach, leading to Palmer seeking an injunction to stop counting.[24][31] His application was rejected by the Federal Court of Australia on 17 September 2013.[32][33] Palmer also stated that despite leading during the count, he would "be highly surprised if I won".[34]

On 21 September 2013, the AEC declared Palmer had won Fairfax by a margin of 36 votes.[35] After an automatic recount, which still resulted in a margin under 100 votes, a full recount was triggered.[36][37]

Full recount

The full recount began on 3 October 2013.[24] Around 20,000 votes were recounted after five days, but more than half of those were challenged by scrutineers.[38] During the count, Palmer increased his lead to as high as 67 votes.[24] According to the AEC spokesperson, the "vast majority" of challenges had come from PUP representatives.[39] By the end of the recounting, 50,099 of the 89,176 ballots were challenged, with 38,644 of those referred to the AEC for a decision.[40][41]

On 31 October 2013, the AEC declared Palmer had won the seat by a margin of 53 votes following the recount.[42][43]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Total enrolled to vote in the 2013 Federal Election by Division, Age Groups and Gender for all States/Territories" (PDF). Australian Electoral Commission. 12 August 2013. Archived from the original (PDF) on 8 December 2025. Retrieved 8 December 2025.
  2. ^ Raue, Ben (16 September 2013). "Seat in focus: Fairfax". The Tally Room. Archived from the original on 9 October 2025. Retrieved 8 December 2025.
  3. ^ "Clive Palmer expected to be dumped by voters at next election, poll reveals". The Guardian. 25 January 2016. Archived from the original on 28 June 2023. Retrieved 8 December 2025.
  4. ^ Green, Antony (1 February 2013). "House Members Retiring at the 2013 Election". ABC News. Archived from the original on 8 December 2025. Retrieved 8 December 2025.
  5. ^ a b c "Fairfax - Federal Election 2013". ABC News. 7 September 2013. Archived from the original on 8 December 2025. Retrieved 8 December 2025.
  6. ^ "Australian billionaire Clive Palmer in narrow seat win". BBC News. 31 October 2013. Archived from the original on 28 July 2024. Retrieved 8 December 2025.
  7. ^ "Fairfax Poll Declared; Palmer Praises Democracy". AustralianPolitics.com. 1 November 2013. Archived from the original on 19 May 2025. Retrieved 8 December 2025.
  8. ^ "Time to embrace electronic voting". Sydney Morning Herald. 2 November 2013. Archived from the original on 8 December 2025. Retrieved 8 December 2025.
  9. ^ Roberts, Greg (9 April 2016). "The member for Palmer: Clive avoids voters and voting". The Australian. Archived from the original on 8 December 2025. Retrieved 8 December 2025.
  10. ^ Hoffman, Bill (19 July 2017). "Greens senator's fate grossly unfair, says LNP stalwart". The Courier Mail. Archived from the original on 8 December 2025. Retrieved 8 December 2025.
  11. ^ "Alex Somlyay (Lib – Fairfax) – Valedictory Speech". AustralianPolitics.com. 24 June 2013. Archived from the original on 19 March 2015. Retrieved 8 December 2025.
  12. ^ Prasser, Scott (9 September 2013). "How the Palmer United Party came out barking". The Conversation. Archived from the original on 1 March 2024. Retrieved 8 December 2025.
  13. ^ Johnson, Chris (25 September 2010). "Lib speaks for himself, defies gag by Abbott". The Canberra Times. Archived from the original on 27 September 2010. Retrieved 8 December 2025.
  14. ^ a b Bowe, William (4 September 2013). "Seats of the day: Fairfax, Hinkler and Flynn". The Poll Bludger. Archived from the original on 30 April 2025. Retrieved 8 December 2025.
  15. ^ "O'Brien wins LNP preselection for Fairfax". Brisbane Times. 18 November 2012. Archived from the original on 30 November 2024. Retrieved 8 December 2025.
  16. ^ Griffiths, Emma; Atherton, Ben (26 April 2013). "I want to be PM, says Palmer". ABC News. Archived from the original on 12 October 2025. Retrieved 8 December 2025.
  17. ^ "2013 Federal Election guide to the seat of Fairfax". The Courier Mail. 31 July 2013. Archived from the original on 8 December 2025. Retrieved 8 December 2025.
  18. ^ Bruinsma, Richard (4 September 2013). "Fairfax candidates questioned on region's future". The Courier Mail. Archived from the original on 8 December 2025. Retrieved 8 December 2025.
  19. ^ Stephens, Kim (24 July 2013). "Woman charged over anti-Islam stickers linked to One Nation candidate". Brisbane Times. Archived from the original on 22 December 2024. Retrieved 8 December 2025.
  20. ^ Bruinsma, Richard (19 June 2013). "Trudy to tackle Clive and Co for Fairfax". The Courier Mail. Archived from the original on 8 December 2025. Retrieved 8 December 2025.
  21. ^ a b Furler, Mark (27 August 2013). "Clive Palmer warns of gay marriage by stealth at forum". The Courier Mail. Archived from the original on 8 December 2025. Retrieved 8 December 2025.
  22. ^ "David Knobel". Australian Greens. Archived from the original on 22 August 2013. Retrieved 8 December 2025.
  23. ^ Raue, Ben. "Fairfax – Australia 2013". The Tally Room. Archived from the original on 24 September 2024. Retrieved 8 December 2025.
  24. ^ a b c d e "2013 Federal Election Late Counting - House Of Reps". Dr Kevin Bonham. 31 October 2013. Archived from the original on 8 December 2025. Retrieved 8 December 2025.
  25. ^ Goot, Murray (2015). "How the Pollsters Called the Horse Race: Changing polling technologies, cost pressures, and the concentration on the two-party-preferred". Abbott's Gambit: The 2013 Australian Federal Election. Archived from the original on 8 December 2025. Retrieved 8 December 2025.
  26. ^ 10 News Queensland [@10NewsQLD] (7 September 2013). "RT @_AdamTodd: Morgan-Ten News exit poll has the Palmer United Party polling 9.5% in Queensland" (Tweet). Archived from the original on 8 December 2025. Retrieved 8 December 2025 – via Twitter.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  27. ^ Davidson, Helen (7 September 2013). "Australian election 2013 - polling day as it happened". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 7 May 2024. Retrieved 8 December 2025.
  28. ^ "QLD DIVISION - FAIRFAX". Australian Electoral Commission. 7 September 2013. Archived from the original on 1 September 2025. Retrieved 8 December 2025.
  29. ^ "The 2013 Federal Election" (PDF). Parliament of Australia. 15 April 2015. Archived from the original (PDF) on 12 July 2024. Retrieved 8 December 2025.
  30. ^ a b "Queensland votes in the Federal Election 2013". news.com.au. 7 September 2013. Archived from the original on 8 December 2025. Retrieved 8 December 2025.
  31. ^ Bowe, William (13 September 2013). "Photo finishes: Fairfax". Crikey. Archived from the original on 9 November 2013. Retrieved 8 December 2025.
  32. ^ Schneider, Joe (16 September 2013). "Palmer Seeks to Block Election Count After Vote Mix-Up". Bloomberg. Archived from the original on 8 December 2025. Retrieved 8 December 2025.
  33. ^ "Court rejects Clive Palmer application to suspend vote counting in Fairfax". The Guardian. 17 September 2013. Archived from the original on 3 January 2024. Retrieved 8 December 2025.
  34. ^ Lehmann, John; Scott, Steven (10 September 2013). "Clive Palmer says he won't win Fairfax because 'Australian electoral system is corrupt'". The Courier Mail. Archived from the original on 8 December 2025. Retrieved 8 December 2025.
  35. ^ AEC [@AusElectoralCom] (21 September 2013). "Fairfax result: PUP candidate Mr Clive Palmer by 36 votes after final ballots counted in Fairfax today" (Tweet). Archived from the original on 8 December 2025. Retrieved 8 December 2025 – via Twitter.
  36. ^ "Clive Palmer wins Sunshine Coast seat of Fairfax by 36 votes, triggering recount". ABC News. 21 September 2013. Archived from the original on 12 March 2023. Retrieved 8 December 2025.
  37. ^ "Palmer wins Fairfax but says AEC is a disgrace". SBS News. 21 September 2013. Archived from the original on 8 December 2025. Retrieved 8 December 2025.
  38. ^ Skinner, Jo (8 October 2013). "Challenged federal election ballot papers slow Fairfax count". ABC News. Archived from the original on 6 May 2025. Retrieved 8 December 2025.
  39. ^ Fraser, Andrew (16 October 2013). "Costly recount puts Clive's tilt in limbo". The Australian. Archived from the original on 8 December 2025. Retrieved 8 December 2025.
  40. ^ "Fairfax recount to drag on for extra week". SBS News. 18 October 2013. Archived from the original on 8 December 2025. Retrieved 8 December 2025.
  41. ^ "Media advisory – Fairfax recount". Australian Electoral Commission. 29 October 2013. Archived from the original on 7 June 2025. Retrieved 8 December 2025.
  42. ^ AEC [@AusElectoralCom] (31 October 2013). "The Fairfax recount has concluded with Mr Clive Palmer elected by a margin of 53 votes" (Tweet). Archived from the original on 8 December 2025. Retrieved 8 December 2025 – via Twitter.
  43. ^ "Clive Palmer wins Sunshine Coast seat of Fairfax, says 'goodbye' Campbell Newman". ABC News. 31 October 2013. Archived from the original on 6 May 2025. Retrieved 8 December 2025.
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