The Palaszczuk years were marked by a reversal of her predecessor’s work, and she beat Campbell Newman in 2015 when no one expected her to. Campbell’s impending win shaped how the Liberal National Party (LNP) and Labour conducted their campaigns. With the lack of potential candidates for the 35 seats that switched from LNP to Labor, Palaszczuk accidentally became premier over a mediocre team. Newman may have had some problems during his government, but it was still making impressive gains, and Palaszczuk spent the last eight years reversing his decisions.
The electoral dynamics favored the LNP, which had effectively wiped out the Labor party. Polling showed Labor was doing better, but voters and the LNP did not anticipate a win for them. A lack of strong defense from the LNP allowed Palaszczuk to roll back almost everything Newman had done.
For almost nine years following, the Labor party ran from the Newman legacy, giving Palaszczuk an uncontested chance to reverse his policies and tilt them towards favored groups. However, this lack of strong defense from the LNP has allowed Palaszczuk to reverse virtually everything Newman did.
Palaszczuk’s administration increased the public service by 25 percent over the past years even though the state’s population has only increased by 13 percent. With the recent financial statistics showing an increase in the state’s debt and costs over budget for multiple projects, the fiscal state of Queensland is in question.
The state of education has also gone down, as have the quality of hospitals and an increase in hospital waiting lists. The lack of growth in social housing and shrinking police force suggest a less than ideal leadership. Palaszczuk’s relationship with unions is also in question, as the link between them and the Labor party is viewed as corrupt in terms of policy dictation.