What is the real reason behind the withdrawal of the LNP candidate James Downing for the safe Labor seat of Oxley?
Rumours circulating in the electorate are that James was in perfectly good health until he heard that he was about to face a torrent of embarrassing publicity which could have seen the minority LNP vote dip even further, giving Bernie Ripoll one of the safest Labor seats in Queensland.
James' good health suddenly took a turn for the worse and a tap on the shoulder from the Liberal / National Party bosses in Brisbane's saw one of the shortest political careers in Australian history come to a sudden end.
Out of the public spotlight, James' quick recuperative abilities have apparently seen his good health magically restored!
VexNews.com reports:
The Queensland LNP has lost yet another candidate, this time in the safe Labor federal seat of Oxley.
LNP officials say the UQ politics student James Downing withdrew for health reasons, although would not elaborate on the nature of his condition. Preselection interruptus is certainly doing the rounds in Queensland conservative circles.
Local party insiders though say the twenty-one year old was "told to resign" and that he is actually in perfectly good health.
With a federal election expected to be called within weeks, the LNP does not currently have a candidate in Oxley.
The young lad has been out campaigning and had set a cracking pace according to local party members.
