Electoral district of McConnel

McConnel is an electoral district of the Legislative Assembly in the Australian state of Queensland. It was created in the 2017 redistribution[1] as essentially a reconfigured version of Brisbane Central.

McConnel Queensland—Legislative Assembly
Map of the electoral district of McConnel, 2017
State	Queensland
Dates current	2017–present
MP	Grace Grace
Party	Labor Party
Namesake	Mary McConnel
Electors	34,005 (2017)
Area	13 km^2 (5.0 sq mi)
Coordinates	27.4569°S 153.034°E / -27.4569; 153.034
Electorates around McConnel: Stafford Clayfield Clayfield Cooper McConnel Bulimba South Brisbane South Brisbane Bulimba

It covers the Brisbane CBD, as well as the suburbs of Kelvin Grove, Herston, Bowen Hills, Newstead, Teneriffe, Fortitude Valley, Spring Hill, Petrie Terrace and New Farm.[1]

It is named after Mary McConnel, one of Queensland's early European settlers, who came to Queensland in 1849. With her husband David McConnel, they ran the Cressbrook pastoral station. Mary McConnel was a close friend of Diamantina Bowen, the wife of the first Queensland Governor George Bowen, and together with a committee of ladies, they embarked on a program of building hospitals for women and children, such as the Lady Bowen Hospital which provided maternity services. After the Bowens left Queensland, Mary McConnel continued to raise funding to build a children's hospital. The Hospital for Sick Children in Brisbane was opened on 11 March 1878.[2]

From results of the last election, McConnel is estimated to be a marginal seat for the Labor Party with a margin of 3.1%.[3] Grace Grace, the last member for Brisbane Central, transferred to McConnel and won with a modest swing.

The electorate containing what is now the Brisbane CBD has been known variously as Town of Brisbane (1859–1873), Brisbane City (1873–1878), North Brisbane (1878–1888), Brisbane North (1888–1912), Brisbane (1912–1977) and Brisbane Central (1977–2017).

Members for McConnel

Member		Party	Term
	Grace Grace	Labor	2017–present

Election results

2017 Queensland state election: McConnel[4]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Liberal National	Jamie Forster	10,017	36.5	−5.5
	Labor	Grace Grace	9,238	33.7	−2.5
	Greens	Kirsten Lovejoy	7,436	27.1	+7.8
	Independent	John Dobinson	283	1.0	+1.0
	Independent	Edward Gilmour	242	0.9	+0.9
	Independent	Kamala Emanuel	217	0.8	+0.8
Total formal votes			27,433	96.1	−2.3
Informal votes			1,128	3.9	+2.3
Turnout			28,561	81.6	+3.8
Two-party-preferred result
	Labor	Grace Grace	15,874	57.9	+4.8
	Liberal National	Jamie Forster	11,559	42.1	−4.8
	Labor hold		Swing	+4.8

See also

• Electoral districts of Queensland
• Members of the Queensland Legislative Assembly by year
• Category:Members of the Queensland Legislative Assembly by name

References

1. Queensland Redistribution Commission (26 May 2017). "Determination of Queensland's Legislative Assembly Electoral Districts" (PDF). Queensland Government Gazette. p. 188. Archived from the original (PDF) on 29 October 2017. Retrieved 29 October 2017.
2. Clun, Rachel (24 February 2017). "The stories behind the 19 new Queensland electorate names". Brisbane Times. Archived from the original on 31 May 2017. Retrieved 1 June 2017.
3. Green, Antony. "2017 Queensland Redistribution". ABC Elections. Archived from the original on 4 November 2017. Retrieved 5 November 2017.
4. 2017 State General Election – McConnel – District Summary Archived 2017-12-01 at the Wayback Machine, ECQ.