(Transcript from SBS World News Radio)
Queensland will go to the poll on January 31 to pass judgement on the first term of the Liberal-National Party government.
Recent opinion polls show the LNP and Labor are neck and neck, and there's speculation the premier Campbell Newman could lose his seat, even if the party wins office.
Stefan Armbruster reports.
(Click on the audio tab above to hear the full report)
Summer holidays are unexpectedly over in Queensland with Liberal National Party Premier Campbell Newman visiting the stand-in governor, chief justice Tim Carmody, to call time on his first term of government.
"This was the single most important thing for me, and that is this point: that Queenslanders don't want and they certainly don't need months of endless politicking and uncertainty."
With an election not due until March, Mr Newman went early.
Opinion polls shows the LNP and Labor parties are evenly splitting supporters.
The Labor opposition leader, Annastacia Palaszczuk, is hopeful.
"This is going to be a David and Goliath battle. Make no mistake. We have nine seats out of an 89 seat parliament, but Queensland deserves so much better."
The LNP's central policy plank is the privatisation of ports and power utilities to raise $33 billion to pay down debt and build infrastructure.
Campbell Newman says the party has made good progress in the first term.
"My team and I have seen real progress in turning around health and education, in creating jobs and making Queensland a safer place to raise your family. There are runs on the board. But I say this, there is more work to be done."
Dogging the government are controversial anti-bikie laws, bitter disputes with doctors over pay and the judiciary over appointments, heavy job cuts to the public service and a decade-high jobless rate of almost seven per cent.
It appears many Queensland voters are not convinced the LNP deserves three more years.
Labor opposition leader Annastacia Palaszczuk.
"Campbell Newman now wants to sell your assets. That means higher electricity prices for families. Labor has learned our lesson. Labor will not sell our assets."
After a landslide victory in 2012, with the LNP taking 78 of the 89 seats, the next parliament could look very different.
Labor currently holds nine seats.
At the last election Campbell Newman made history by leading his party to victory from outside parliament and taking his inner-Brisbane seat of Ashgrove from Labor.
With a margin of less than six per cent and recent opinion polls, there is now speculation that while the LNP will probably be returned to govern, it might be without Mr Newman at the helm.
Adding to the mix and all hoping for their share of seats are Katter's Australian Party, the Palmer United Party, the Greens and Pauline Hanson, who has rejoined the One Nation Party.
"That's why Campbell Newman has come back early to hold this election, so that we don't have enough time to get ourselves into place and get issues out there. Then I tell people: I've been talking about this, I don't need 26 days to get ready, I've been campaigning for the last 18 years."
While the politicians have 26 days to work the campaign trail, many Queenslanders will still be on holiday and the next government could be picked while nursing an Australia Day hangover.
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