2026 Stafford state by-election
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16 May 2026
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Electoral district of Stafford in the Queensland Legislative Assembly | |||||||||||||||||
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A state by-election for the seat of Stafford in the Queensland Legislative Assembly will be held on 16 May 2026,[1] following the death of independent MP Jimmy Sullivan on 9 April 2026.[2][3]
Incumbent member of parliament
Sullivan had served as the member for Stafford since retaining the seat for the Labor Party at the 2020 state election.[4] He held the seat at the 2024 state election despite suffering a 6.6% swing against him on the two-party-preferred vote (TPP).[5] Shortly thereafter Sullivan was investigated by the Queensland Police Service over an alleged domestic incident, and in May 2025 he was expelled from the Labor Party caucus due to failing to adhere to "a safe return to work plan" as described by party leader Steven Miles, and as domestic allegations were levelled against Sullivan.[6][7] He served the remainder of his term as an independent MP on the crossbench, and died in office on 9 April 2026, with his death treated as "not suspicious" by police who discovered his body in his home.[2]
Seat details
The district or seat of Stafford is located in the northern suburbs of Brisbane, and incorporates the suburbs of Stafford, Gordon Park, Grange, Kedron, Stafford Heights, and parts of Chermside, Chermside West, McDowall, Alderley, Wilston, Newmarket and Windsor. Since its reincarnation as a seat in 2001, Stafford has usually been a fairly safe seat for the centre-left Labor Party, which has won the seat at every election with at least 55% of the TPP vote, with the exception of the landslide 2012 state election won by the centre-right to right-wing Liberal National Party (LNP). Labor and the LNP have always finished in the top two positions on the primary vote in the seat, and left-wing party the Greens have regularly registered primary votes of between 16% and 18%.
2024 election results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labor | Jimmy Sullivan | 13,856 | 38.77 | −6.83 | |
| Liberal National | Fiona Hammond | 13,605 | 38.06 | +6.16 | |
| Greens | Jess Lane | 6,456 | 18.06 | +1.66 | |
| One Nation | Stuart Andrews | 1,134 | 3.17 | +0.17 | |
| Family First | Alan Denaro | 692 | 1.94 | +1.94 | |
| Total formal votes | 35,743 | 97.36 | |||
| Informal votes | 971 | 2.64 | |||
| Turnout | 36,714 | 90.23 | |||
| Two-party-preferred result | |||||
| Labor | Jimmy Sullivan | 19,774 | 55.32 | −6.58 | |
| Liberal National | Fiona Hammond | 15,969 | 44.68 | +6.58 | |
| Labor hold | Swing | -6.58 | |||
Key dates
Key dates in relation to the by-election are:[9][10]
- 17 April 2026: Issue of the writ
- 21 April 2026: Close of electoral roll
- 24 April 2026: Close of candidate nominations
- 5 May 2026: Early voting commences
- 16 May 2026: Polling day
- 9 July 2026: Last day for the return of the writ
Candidates
Candidates are listed in ballot order.
| Party | Candidate | Background | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Labor | Luke Richmond | Assistant secretary of Queensland Labor.[11] | |
| Legalise Cannabis | Jacqueline Verne | Medicinal cannabis patient. | |
| Independent People First | Damian Smart | ||
| Libertarian | Daniel Selff | Mathematics teacher. | |
| Independent Socialist | Liam Parry | Activist and University of Queensland student.[12] | |
| Greens | Jess Lane | School teacher and third-placing candidate at the 2024 election.[13] | |
| Animal Justice | Lucy O'Brien | Kindergarten Director & Teacher. | |
| Family First | Alan Denaro | Small business owner, and fifth-placing candidate at the 2024 election. | |
| Liberal National | Fiona Hammond | Former councillor and second-placing candidate at the 2024 election.[14] | |
The Labor candidate for Stafford is the party's assistant state secretary, Luke Richmond.[15] The Liberal candidate is Fiona Hammond, a former councillor who contested the seat at the 2024 state election.[15] Liam Parry will stand for the Queensland Socialists.[15] Damian Smart will contest the election on behalf of Gerard Rennick People First.[16] Queensland Socialists and People First lack state-registered parties, and nominated their candidates as independents. Jess Lane, a school teacher endorsed by the Queensland Greens, will again contest the Stafford by-election.
The One Nation party will not run a candidate, as they intend to focus their efforts on the 2028 Queensland state election.[17][18]
