Her election boilover in 2015 stunned the state, but Annastacia Palaszczuk is poised to show Queenslanders that was no fluke.
Then, Ms Palaszczuk did the seemingly impossible by leading her party back from the wilderness after they had been reduced to just seven seats out of 89 at the previous poll.
Now, the 48-year-old Labor leader faces the real test of her mettle, to finally shake off the unflattering suggestion she is the "accidental premier."
The daughter of long-term Labor MP Henry Palaszczuk has now had three years to show Queenslanders what a Palaszczuk government looks like.
It cuts a contrasting picture to the Liberal National Party government under Campbell Newman, which was punished at the ballot box for its bullish and non-consultative style. Instead Ms Palaszczuk has been conciliatory and collaborative, and her government has been both praised and panned for commissioning a range of reviews and reports.
News that makes sense
Your trusted source for staying up-to-date with the world around you. Get free daily news updates and analysis, straight to your inbox.
Despite entering politics in 2006 and serving as a minister in the Bligh government, the mantle of leadership sat awkwardly at first for her as she appeared uncertain and flustered in front of TV cameras.
But she has become more comfortable and assured over time.
Something which never changed was her ability to connect with people; when meeting with regular Queenslanders there are few politicians who can summon as much natural warmth and genuine interest as the Member for Inala.
She has also managed to keep her minority government afloat despite shedding members and facing factional fights from within the party.
Governing with the support of Independent speaker Peter Wellington, the Palaszczuk government has often relied on the two Katter MPs, Rob Katter and Shane Knuth, to win votes in the house.
The fact that the Katters were willing to work with Ms Palaszczuk rather than the LNP, with whom they are more aligned politically, speaks to her ability to compromise to reach her larger goals.
Ms Palaszczuk has also had to overcome losing two of her far north Queensland MPs early in her term, dumping Billy Gordon over an undisclosed criminal history, while Rob Pyne quit the party following a number of political differences.
Some pressure was let off Labor when the LNP's Steve Dickson defected to One Nation, however the government still only had one more seat than the opposition, meaning she had to tread carefully when dealing with the expanded crossbench.
There have also been rumours of factional in-fighting during her time in office, with Deputy Premier and leader of the powerful Left faction Jackie Trad unhappy with the government's dealing with Indian mining giant Adani.
Adani's Carmichael mine has been one of the most polarising issues of Mr Palaszczuk's time in office, with environmental groups furious the mine is going ahead.
Through it all she's held a handy advantage over her LNP counterparts in popularity polls, first outseeing Lawrence Springborg before Tim Nicholls usurped him in May 2016 but failed to make a dent on the premier's approval ratings.
She began her time in office with some still unable to pronounce or spell her last name; she finishes as a popular leader and if voters do return her to office, there will be nothing "accidental" about it.
