Embattled Queensland Premier Anna Bligh will be hoping for a more positive day on the campaign trail, especially now the drawn out federal leadership battle is nearing a conclusion.
Ms Bligh, who ventures to Cairns Thursday to peddle policies, has in the opening week of the election campaign defended Labor's choice of young candidates and pleaded with Prime Minister Julia Gillard and Kevin Rudd to settle leadership doubts.
Mr Rudd has answered the call by publicly resigning as foreign minister while in the US on Wednesday and explaining part of his decision was to help Ms Bligh to be re-elected at the March 24 election.
He described Ms Bligh as a good friend who needed a clear run at fighting off the challenge by Liberal National Party.
'I also believe that this ongoing saga is bad for my good friend Anna Bligh, as she fights the fight of her life in Queensland,' Mr Rudd said during his resignation speech from Washington DC.
'She's a great premier. She's a good friend.
'And I believe the good people of Queensland deserve some clear space over the coming month, as they make up their minds on a very important decision on the future of Queensland - my home state; a state I'm very proud to be from.'
Labor expelled its 19-year-old candidate for Southern Downs Peter Watson on Tuesday for white supremacist views and then on Wednesday Ms Bligh defended the selection of a university student in a seat that is about 1000km from his home.
It's made it a prickly start to the election campaign for Ms Bligh whose press conferences have been peppered with questions about problems over policies.
Her visit to the seat of Cairns, which Labor holds by a tick over four per cent, will be a chance to reinforce her performance in leading the Queensland's recovery after Cyclone Yasi and floods just over a year ago.
She will also make an impression on the electorate of Barron River which Labor holds with a 2.3 per cent margin.
Liberal National Party leader Campbell Newman is on another mystery tour.
He heads out of Townsville to Thursday morning with a media entourage to an undisclosed destination.
Media have been told only to wear cool clothing and a hat.
The secrecy surrounding the LNP's road trip only adds to the theory that the LNP camp is paranoid about having their political campaign sabotaged or hijacked by interjectors.
