Stephen Seymour James Andrew (born 9 December 1968) is an Australian politician who has served as the member for Mirani in the Queensland Legislative Assembly since 2017.[1]
Stephen Andrew | |
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![]() Andrew, c. 2017 | |
Member of the Queensland Legislative Assembly for Mirani | |
Assumed office 25 November 2017 | |
Preceded by | Jim Pearce |
Personal details | |
Born | Stephen Seymour James Andrew 9 December 1968 Mackay, Queensland, Australia |
Political party | Independent (since 2024) |
Other political affiliations | One Nation (until 2024) |
Children | 2 |
Residence(s) | Mackay, Queensland, Australia |
Andrew describes himself as a "fourth-generation South Sea Islander", and is the first South Sea Islander to be elected to parliament.[2] His great-great-grandmother Lucy Querro of Ambae Island (now part of Vanuatu) was one of the Pacific Islander workers who came to Queensland to work in either the sugarcane fields or domestic service; Andrew claims she was "blackbirded". In July 2019 Andrew became a Vanuatu tribal chieftain, Chief Moli Duru Ambrae, following ceremonies held on Ambae Island.[3] He was bestowed the chiefly name Moli Duru Ambae.[4]
Before entering parliament he worked as a firearms dealer and pest controller.[5] Andrew is the sole One Nation MP in the Queensland Parliament, but is not the state leader of the party. Ousted MP Steve Dickson held the position until his resignation.[6][7] The position is currently vacant.
On 2 August 2024, Andrew was disendorsed by One Nation for the 2024 Queensland state election after he considered joining Katter's Australian Party.[8] Following the disendorsment, Andrew resigned from One Nation to sit as an independent.[9]
References
edit- ^ Green, Antony. "Mirani". Queensland Election 2017. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Archived from the original on 9 March 2018.
- ^ Moore, Tony (27 November 2017). "One Nation wins central Queensland seat of Mirani". Brisbane Times. Archived from the original on 27 February 2018. Retrieved 9 March 2018.
- ^ Madigan, Michael (8 August 2019). "Chief Moi a reminder of our shameful past". The Courier-Mail. p. 26.
- ^ Lynch, Lydia (28 November 2019). "One Nation MP apologises for failing to declare Vanuatu trip". Brisbane Times.
- ^ "Gun dealer may lead One Nation in Qld - news.com.au — Australia's #1 news site". www.news.com.au. Archived from the original on 1 January 2018. Retrieved 9 March 2018.
- ^ "LNP chooses first female party leader Deb Frecklington to take on Premier Palaszczuk". ABC News. 12 December 2017.
- ^ "One Nation's Steve Dickson resigns over strip club footage". SBS News. Retrieved 14 June 2019.
- ^ "Pauline Hanson dumps One Nation's Stephen Andrew ahead of Queensland election". The Australian. 1 August 2024. Archived from the original on 2 August 2024. Retrieved 2 August 2024.
- ^ "I have resigned my membership and all association with the One Nation party". Twitter. Stephen Andrew MP. 3 August 2024. Archived from the original on 24 August 2024. Retrieved 24 August 2024.
External links
edit- "Mr Stephen (Steve) Andrew". Queensland Parliament. Retrieved 10 March 2018.
- "Stephen Andrew". One Nation. Retrieved 2 August 2024.