Shaun Nelson
|
Lieutenant Shaun Nelson |
|
|---|---|
| Territory Leader of Pauline Hanson's One Nation in the Australian Capital Territory |
|
|
In office June 1997 – December 1997 |
|
| Deputy | Peter Mackay |
| Preceded by | Office established |
| Succeeded by | Peter Mackay |
| Member of the Queensland Legislative Assembly for Tablelands |
|
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In office 13 June 1998 – 17 February 2001 |
|
| Preceded by | Tom Gilmore Jr. |
| Succeeded by | Rosa Lee Long |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Shaun Christopher Nelson 22 March 1973 Brisbane, Queensland, Australia |
| Political party | Independent (since 1999) |
| Other political affiliations |
Liberal (1991–1997) Pauline Hanson's One Nation (1997–1999) |
| Occupation |
Maritime warfare officer (Royal Australian Navy) Operational signalman (Australian Army) |
| Profession |
Soldier Politician |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | Commonwealth of Australia |
| Service/branch |
Royal Australian Navy (RAN) (2001–present) Australian Army (AA) (1991–1998) |
| Years of service | 1991–1998; 2001–present |
| Rank |
_OF-2.svg){kind=small} Lieutenant (RAN)_(OCDT).svg){kind=small} Private (AA) |
| Unit | Maritime Warfare (RAN), 7th Signal Regiment (AA) |
Shaun Christopher Nelson (born 22 March 1973) is an Australian politician. He was a member of the Legislative Assembly of Queensland from 1998 to 2001, representing the electorate of Tablelands. He was elected as one of 11 MPs of the One Nation Party at the 1998 state election, before resigning from the party to sit as an independent in February 1999. He served out the remainder of his term before being defeated by One Nation candidate Rosa Lee Long at the 2001 election. He currently serves as a Maritime Warfare Officer in the Royal Australian Navy.
Nelson was raised in South East, Western and Northern Queensland and joined the military at a young age, serving in the Australian Army as an operational signalman. He initially joined the Liberal Party of Australia, but first became involved in organised politics when, at the age of 24, he was one of the founders of the Australian Capital Territory branch of the One Nation Party. The launch of a branch by the right-wing party in liberal Canberra caused controversy, with Nelson claiming of being denied meeting venues before organising its first meetings amid public protests in July. He was subsequently appointed as the inaugural president of the party's ACT branch. Nelson was behind a move to have the party contest the 1998 territory election that was subsequently vetoed by national party president Pauline Hanson. He later resigned as branch president in December 1997, citing personal reasons, later revealed to be a marriage breakdown.
Nelson returned to Queensland after the collapse of his marriage, and was preselected as the One Nation candidate for the seat of Tablelands for the 1998 election, challenging incumbent Mines and Energy Minister Tom Gilmore. Tablelands was considered a safe seat for the rural conservative National Party, held by a margin of more than twenty percent, and Nelson was not generally considered likely to pose a serious threat to Gilmore. Despite having only had three months to campaign, he polled more than 42% of the vote on election day, defeating Gilmore on preferences and becoming Queensland's youngest member of parliament. He declared his priorities upon his election as being the abolition of mining lease fees, the reintroduction of the death penalty, opposition to Aboriginal native title and resisting the deregulation of the dairy industry.
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