By Chase Christensen
The 2025 federal election is heating up, with experts predicting an election to be held as early as April. We can expect a two-horse race in the Longman electorate, as the current Member for Longman Terry Young looks to defend his throne and hold office for a third straight electoral term. Young’s opponent Rhiannyn Douglas has other ideas as she is looking to pull off an underdog win and take back the seat of Longman for the Labor Party which they have not held since 2016. Labor is hoping that a fresh face will be their point of attack to turn the tables.
As a new face in the political world, Ms Douglas is looking to win the Longman seat on her first attempt. Ms Douglas grew up in Morayfield as a child of a middle-class family, with her late father working as a carpenter and her mother an accounts assistant. She faced challenges economically, just like many families still do in Australia. Part of her motivation for her greatest strength as a leader is Douglas’s ability to connect with the people.
“Being approachable and understanding is vital for representing the community effectively,” she said.
I asked Ms Douglas about her plans in partnership with the Albanese Government, if elected. Firstly, she stated that the current Labor Government had done well supporting the Longman community. An example of this is the fully funded Morayfield Urgent Care Clinic, which provides free and accessible health care. In regard to her plans post-election if she wins is that Douglas is “committed to advocating for even more clinics and services to meet the needs of families in Longman”.
It’s clear Ms Douglas strongly cares and gives a lot of attention to health services, which can accumulate votes as much as it can take away votes.
She is confident about winning the election and having the seat of Longman swing in her favour. I asked her why the people of Longman should make the decision to vote for her over Mr Young and the LNP party.
“Terry Young and the LNP Government are out of touch with the needs of the community,” she said.
She also criticised the seat’s leader, as she reminded me that Mr Young was against multiple ‘beneficial’ proposals from the Albanese government, including large tax cuts for working Australians.
“Our community would be worse off under a coalition government,” Ms Douglas said.
Ms Douglas made it clear that she is not running to simply make up numbers, she believes she has a real shot at winning and can benefit the Longman community.
On the other hand, Mr Young is sticking with the phrase “gets things done!” for his advertising slogan. The work he’s already completed for the community will be his key to victory if he does succeed at the upcoming election. I also asked Mr Young about his future plans and why he should be voted in for a third straight term.
He first criticised the federal government, accusing them of not providing enough funding in our area, along with taking credit for projects he already secured in his first term under an LNP Government.
Mr Young is extremely active within his community, often attending community events, local schools and more. When I asked him how he connects with the Longman people so well, he said he was in the office 10% of his time and 90% out in the community. It is clear he has strong support and will be hard to beat, due to his popularity and strong performances in the previous two elections.
Mr Young said he was aiming to increase the limit on instant asset write-off for small businesses in order to free up cash to employ more staff. This would assist the Longman electorate in having a competitive edge over other communities when people are looking for a place to begin their small business venture. He added that more policies would be announced closer to the election.
When I asked him about his opposition, he explained that it was up to the other candidate to make their case for why they’re the best option, before adding, “Australia has always faired better under a Coalition Government”.
Longman is once again a key seat for the upcoming election and it’s already proving to be a fiery leadup between the two major candidates.
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