Stephen Andrew

Stephen Andrew
MP
Andrew, c. 2017
Member of the Queensland Legislative Assembly for Mirani
In office
25 November 2017 – 30 October 2024
Preceded byJim Pearce
Succeeded byGlen Kelly
Personal details
Born
Stephen Seymour James Andrew

(1968-12-09) 9 December 1968 (age 55)
Mackay, Queensland, Australia
Political party
Children2
Residence(s)Mackay, Queensland, Australia

Stephen Seymour James Andrew (born 9 December 1968) is an Australian politician who served as the member for Mirani in the Queensland Legislative Assembly from 2017 to 2024 when he was defeated by Glen Kelly at the 2024 Queensland state election.[1]

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 was the sole One Nation MP in the Queensland Parliament, but was not the state leader of the party. Ousted MP Steve Dickson held the position until his resignation.[6][7]

On 2 August 2024, Andrew was disendorsed by One Nation for the 2024 Queensland state election after he considered joining Katter's Australian Party (KAP).[8] Following the disendorsment, Andrew resigned from One Nation and briefly sat as an independent[9] before joining the Katter's Australian Party in September 2024.[10]

  1. ^ Green, Antony. "Mirani". Queensland Election 2017. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Archived from the original on 9 March 2018.
  2. ^ 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.
  3. ^ Madigan, Michael (8 August 2019). "Chief Moi a reminder of our shameful past". The Courier-Mail. p. 26.
  4. ^ Lynch, Lydia (28 November 2019). "One Nation MP apologises for failing to declare Vanuatu trip". Brisbane Times.
  5. ^ "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.
  6. ^ "LNP chooses first female party leader Deb Frecklington to take on Premier Palaszczuk". ABC News. 12 December 2017.
  7. ^ "One Nation's Steve Dickson resigns over strip club footage". SBS News. Retrieved 14 June 2019.
  8. ^ "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.
  9. ^ "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.
  10. ^ "One Nation reject Stephen Andrew joins Katter's Australian Party". Courier Mail. Madura McCormack. 9 September 2024. Retrieved 9 September 2024.