An ousted state MP, the acting mayor and a former One Nation candidate previously accused of posting antisemitic content online are among the candidates to become Redlands mayor.
asserted
MP → oust → candidates
Former mayor Jos Mitchell quit her post last week, citing a culture of bullying at the bayside council, south-east of Brisbane, triggering a byelection.
asserted
Mitchell → quit → byelection
Five candidates have so far confirmed they will contest the mayoral race but acting mayor Julie Talty and former local Labor MP Don Brown appear to be the most prominent early frontrunners.
asserted
Talty → confirm → race
Brown launched his campaign on Facebook, vowing to oppose the Olympic whitewater facility planned for the council, while Talty was quoted in the local paper pitching herself as a steady hand following a period of instability.
asserted
Talty → launch → instability
“I’ve been sitting in the role since May 10, and I’ve done my very best to put the chaos of the Jos era behind us,” Talty is reported as saying to the Redland Bayside News.
uncertain
Talty → sit → News
Talty was contacted to comment and confirm she will run, but has not responded to this masthead.
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she → contact → masthead
With Mitchell on leave since May, Brown has been shaping for a run online for months.
uncertain
Brown → shape → months
In a video posted on Monday morning, Brown said his experience in government made him best-placed for the job.
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him → post → job
“We need to make sure that we are not spending $250 million on a whitewater white elephant, that’s not what Redlands needs,” he said.
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he → need → what
While the infrastructure for the whitewater centre would be paid for by the state and federal governments, the council would take ownership after the games.
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council → pay → games
“We need to stop the infighting, we need to stop the mess, and you don’t do that by rewarding an existing councillor with the top job,” Brown said.
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Brown → need → job
Last week, the council voted to request a postal ballot for the vote, which will likely be held near Christmas, though there is no official date yet for the poll.
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which → vote → poll
Outside of Brown and Talty, councillor Rowanne McKenzie – a council ally of Talty – is the most well-known, while former One Nation and Trumpet of Patriots candidate Gary Williamson, and local lawyer Jasmine Person have also said
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McKenzie → know → Patriots
More councillors are expected to enter the race, with some insiders estimating up to five of the remaining 10 could run.
uncertain
10 → expect → race
Should any of them win, a second byelection would be needed to fill their council seat.
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byelection → win → seat
In a lengthy post on Facebook, McKenzie said as mayor she would focus on getting the basics right.
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basics → say → mayor
“With a new City Plan being developed, the state government reviewing the SEQ Regional Plan and the Brisbane 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games approaching, the decisions we make now will have lasting consequences,” she said.
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she → develop → consequences
McKenzie and Brown have both previously faced backlash for comments made on Facebook.
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McKenzie → face → Facebook
In 2023, Brown paid his 2020 LNP candidate bev Walters $50,000 to settle a defamation matter after he made remarks about her wanting to open borders during COVID-19 closures “because she owns a travel agency”.
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she → pay → agency
In 2021, then-member for Redlands Kim Richards used parliamentary privilege to reveal McKenzie had been interviewed by police about a Facebook account named Scarlett Rivers, the IP address of which was traced to her house and which had been used to make allegations about Redland councillor Lance Hewlett’s wife Sheena.
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which → use → wife
“A fake Facebook profile and email account under the name ‘Scarlett Rivers’ was allegedly created to send Mrs Hewlett’s employer, a Gold Coast kindergarten, unfounded and false accusations in messages that asserted Mrs Hewlett was posting unauthorised images of students on social media,” Richards told parliament.
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Richards → create → parliament
While he has not had great success, Williamson is no stranger to a campaign.
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Williamson → have → campaign
He was the One Nation candidate in Redlands in the 2024 state election where he secured 5.6 per cent of the vote.
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he → secure → vote
In the 2025 federal election he ran for the Trumpet of Patriots in Bowman, where he received 3.6 per cent.
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he → run → cent
During the 2024 election, The Guardian reported he compared COVID-19 vaccinations to the Holocaust.
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he → report → Holocaust
The Aporia
