Wayde Chiesa

Chiesa was born and raised in Ingham, and was a childhood friend of Premier David Crisafulli.^[1][2][3] He grew up on his family's sugarcane farm, and moved to Townsville for university.^[3]

Chiesa previously served as CEO of Regional Development Australia Townsville and North West Queensland, and as Director of Regional Development and Investment at a local non-profit in Townsville.^[2] He also worked for Townsville City Council and is a chartered accountant.^[1][4] For almost two decades, he was a sports commentator with sports broadcast narrator.^[2][3]

He successfully contested the 2025 Hinchinbrook state by-election with the Liberal National Party, succeeding Nick Dametto of Katter's Australian Party, who resigned to run for mayor of Townsville.^[5][6][1] The victory marked the first time a sitting Queensland government gained a seat in a by-election since 1998.^[7]

Chiesa is a member of the Governance, Energy and Finance Committee.^[8]