ROLLING COVERAGE: Election Day 2020 on the Fraser Coast
6.20pm - Fraser Coast
Check out our live updates on election results in Hervey Bay and Maryborough by clicking here.
6pm - Hervey Bay
RETIRING Hervey Bay MP Ted Sorensen has spent the day campaigning for LNP candidate Steve Coleman.
4.30pm - Maryborough
INCUMBENT Maryborough MP Bruce Saunders has cast his vote at Maryborough West State School.
Alongside his wife Jenny, he was soaking up the final moments of the campaign before the counting begins.
2pm - Tinana
Tinana voter Alex Kunst said the big issues for him this election were employment and economic recovery following COVID-19.
He wanted a State Government which delivered jobs growth for Maryborough and was looking forward to the job opportunities brought by the Rheinmetall factory and new Downer EDI train package.
He wanted the elected government to maintain Maryborough infrastructure which would help businesses prosper following the crisis.
For voter Leah Van Tonder, the big issues were education and safety.
She said as a teacher, she wanted a government which would provide better education for students in the state and hire more teachers to educate them.
She also believed it was better to keep the borders closed for longer to keep the state safe.
1.30pm
For voter Sean McKay, the biggest issue for the state was the environment, especially when it came to protecting the Great Barrier Reef.
In the Maryborough electorate, he believed the biggest issue was jobs.
He felt this state election was less personal and more ad-driven than previous years owing to the coronavirus crisis.
Andrew Walker the big issue in Maryborough was drug abuse.
He didn't believe any of the candidates had really addressed the issue.
He wanted to see something done to improve drug rehab opportunities in the electorate.
He also wanted a transparent and honest state government
1pm - Maryborough West
At Maryborough West State School, a slow but steady stream of voters turned out to cast their ballots.
Margie Liaviano said she wanted an MP who would represent the people of Maryborough and take a stand on serious ethical issues like abortion and euthanasia.
She said a representative needed to have a vision for Maryborough and would do something about jobs and employment.
For her son Gabe Liaviano, his biggest issue this election was taxes, saying that they pushed up the cost of living and there were too many of them.
He also said border control was a big issue, and whoever was elected needed to keep the coronavirus under control.
12.30pm - Tiaro
At Tiaro, Owanyilla voter Catherine Macsween said her decision was based on whether or not farmers would be looked after by the State Government.
"It seems to me it (farmers issues) get put on the back burner," she said. She wanted the government to make sure farmers had access to the resources they needed, saying the nation was built on farmers.
For Gundiah voter Troy Macfarlane, the big issue was firearms licensing and ownership. He said firearms were "a passion and a hobby" for him and he wanted to see a streamlined licensing process which was not so expensive. They both said they felt like the coronavirus crisis had not played that big a part in the state election.
Noon update
It's been a much quieter election day this year thanks to record numbers at pre-polling booths.
The Chronicle caught up with Hervey Bay's LNP candidate Steve Coleman at Sandy Strait State School.
He said it had been a long campaign and there had been huge numbers of voters turning out earlier than normal but thinner crowds made it easier to directly engage with locals.
"It has been hard work and we have been putting in the hours to get to the finish line," he said.
"It has been head down, bum up."
At Maryborough it's also quieter than usual.
Among the election day voters who have turned out is husband and wife Mathew and Donna Naismith.
For Mr Naismith, the big issues were the coronavirus crisis and crime in the Maryborough area.
He didn't believe the State Government had been fully forthcoming about the details of the crisis.
Both he and his wife agreed that whoever is voted in, needed to crack down on crime in the area, saying the rate had gone up over the years.
When asked about what they were looking for in a representative, Mrs Naismith said she was looking for a person who "stood up for the electorate, stood up to be counted, didn't role over in the face of pressure and did not play party politics".
"May the best man or woman win," she said.
11.30 am - Urangan
Hervey Bay candidates Damian Huxham for One Nation and Independent candidate Stuart Taylor are both greeting voters in Urangan.
Mr Huxham is at Sandy Strait School and Mr Taylor is at Urangan Point State School.
Schools were once again a hot election topic this campaign. Mr Taylor wants to build a new state high school next to the Nikenbah Sports Precinct.
10.30am - Toogoom
LIFELONG Fraser Coast local and former MP Lin Powell has been helping with LNP candidate Denis Chapman's campaign in Maryborough.
He spoke to the Chronicle at the Toogoom polling booth.
While his most memorable elections were those in which he ran for office, this election would also be one to remember for a different reason.
Mr Powell, who joined the Nationals in 1964, said tensions at pre-polling booths had been running higher than normal.
"Lately it has become more polarised," he said.
"I was at Maryborough the other day and it was quiet tense and I haven't seen that before."
Handing out at Toogoom for the Greens was first time election volunteer Katrina Ludwig.
She said her six-year-old daughter was the driving force behind the decision
"She is very passionate about the environment and she really wanted me to do more to help out," she said.
Katrina also said she was having a lovely day, everyone had been friendly and she would be back next election to hand out cards again.
10.15am - Mungar
A HALLOWEEN-themed bake sale was being held outside Mungar State School on Saturday.
Michelle Hebbermann and Candice Kronau were manning the stall and the ladies encouraged people to come along and make a purchase to support the school's P and C.
They are all dressed in different coloured shirts, but that hasn't stopped the volunteers at Mungar State School from having a laugh together on Election Day.
Pete Kelly, volunteering for the LNP, Kathy Barry, volunteering for the ALP and Darrell Naylor, handing out flyers for One Nation, we're sharing a joke outside the polling booths on Saturday morning.
Ms Barry said everyone was having fun and getting along.
10am - Sunbury
Maryborough's One Nation candidate Sharon Lohse was meeting voters at Sunbury State School. She said she was enjoying the atmosphere and enjoying chatting with people about the issues that were on their minds.
Mrs Lohse said it was a nice end to what had been a challenging couple of weeks at the pre poll leading up to Election Day.
9.50am - Maryborough
CASTING her vote for her husband in the hall of the Maryborough church where they were married was a special moment for Sonya Chapman.
She voted at St Paul's Anglican Church hall on Saturday morning with Maryborough's LNP candidate Denis Chapman, by her side.
Mr Chapman said it had been a memorable campaign and one he was proud to be part of.
He said he had decided to run because he wanted to do as much as he could for the community.
Mr Chapman said he loved his current role as a Fraser Coast councillor, but that being the member for Maryborough would open up other opportunities to champion the community.
Also at St Paul's hall on Saturday morning were former Federal ALP candidate Jason Scanes, handing out how to vote fliers for incumbent Labor MP Bruce Saunders and former Fraser Coast mayor Chris Loft, handing out flyers for Mr Chapman.
9.40am - Pialba
THE the Pialba polling both on Boat Harbour Drive, Georgina and John Green said it was nice to come and vote with their children. With a baby in the high-risk health category, they said strict border closures were important to them and that had influenced their vote.
9.30am - Hervey Bay
ADRIAN Tantari has voted this morning at Hervey Bay State High School.
Hervey Bay's Labor candidate said the the reception had been very good.
"I think people of Hervey Bay have responded to the fact the Premier has had a strong economic plan in place," he said.
"She has kept Hervey Bay safe and people are responding to that."
He said it has been an intense two weeks of pre polling trying to meet as many people as possible.
He plans to spend this evening with his campaign workers.
9am:
ONE of the most important election days in the history of Queensland is here.
The Chronicle is bringing you rolling coverage from the polling booths and updates into the night.
Reporters will be visiting all suburbs from Glenwood to Urangan and everywhere in between.
If you still haven't decided, you can catch up on debate replays and 25 top local election stories here.
A list of where to vote is here and today's election editorial can be read here.
May the best candidates win.
