Keith Wright (Australian politician)

{{Infobox officeholder

| honorific_prefix =

| name = Keith Wright

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| office = Leader of the Opposition in Queensland
Leader of the Labor Party in Queensland
Elections: 1983

| term_start = 20 October 1982

| term_end = 29 August 1984

| predecessor = Ed Casey

| successor = Nev Warburton

| office1 =

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| leader1 =

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| office3 = Member of the Queensland Legislative Assembly for Rockhampton
Rockhampton South (1969–1972)

| term_start3 = 17 May 1969

| term_end3 = 5 November 1984

| predecessor3 = Rex Pilbeam

| successor3 = Paul Braddy

{{Collapsed infobox section begin|Federal politics|titlestyle=background-color:#eee}}

| office4 = Member of the Australian Parliament for Capricornia

| term_start4 = 1 December 1984

| term_end4 = 13 March 1993

| predecessor4 = Doug Everingham

| successor4 = Marjorie Henzell{{Collapsed infobox section end}}

| birth_name = Keith Webb Wright

| birth_date = 9 January 1942

| birth_place = Toowoomba, Queensland, Australia

| death_date = {{Death date and age|df=y|13 January 2015|9 January 1942}}

| death_place = Vietnam

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| nationality = Australian

| party = {{plainlist|

Independent {{Small|(since 1993)}}
Labor {{small|(until 1993)}}

}}

| spouse = Allison Donohue {{small|(1987–1992)}}
Barbara Mitchell

| children = 1

| relatives =

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| alma_mater = {{plainlist|

}}

| occupation = {{hlist|Teacher|Politician}}

}}

Keith Webb Wright (9 January 1942 – 13 January 2015) was an Australian politician, teacher, and Baptist preacher who was Leader of the Labor Party in Queensland and Leader of the Opposition in Queensland between 1982 and 1984. Following his career in state politics, Wright sat in federal parliament for Labor between 1984 and 1993 in the seat of Capricornia.{{cite web|title=Former Members|publisher=Parliament of Queensland|year=2015| url=http://www.parliament.qld.gov.au/members/former/bio?id=3506876768|access-date= 25 January 2015}}

In 1993, while a member of parliament, Wright was jailed for eight years for indecent dealing and rape.

Biography

Born in Toowoomba, Queensland, Wright was educated at the University of Queensland and Kelvin Grove Teachers College in Brisbane before becoming a Rockhampton teacher and Baptist preacher.[https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2015/jan/13/keith-wright-former-queensland-labor-leader-jailed-for-paedophilia-dies-aged-72 Keith Wright, former Queensland Labor leader jailed for paedophilia, dies aged 72 | Australia news | The Guardian]

On 17 May 1969, Wright was elected to the Legislative Assembly of Queensland as the Labor member for Rockhampton South and after a seat redistribution, represented Rockhampton (1972–1984).{{Cite QldMLA|access-date=27 April 2020}} In 1982, he became Leader of the Opposition. Wright remained opposition leader until he left the Assembly in 1984, transferring to federal politics as the Labor MP for Capricornia in the Australian House of Representatives.

In 1993, Wright was charged with indecently dealing and rape, and as a result lost his Labor endorsement.{{cite web|last=Carr|first=Adam|title=Australian Election Archive|work=Psephos, Adam Carr's Election Archive|url=http://psephos.adam-carr.net/countries/a/australia/1993/1993repsqld.txt|access-date=11 January 2015}} He contested the 1993 election as an independent, gaining 5.9% of the vote but losing to endorsed ALP candidate Marjorie Henzell. In December 1993 he was convicted and jailed for nine years for raping and indecently dealing with two young girls.

After leaving jail, Wright moved to Vietnam and ran a company, International Language Academy Australia,{{cite web|title=International Language Academy Australia|url=http://www.internationallanguageacademy.com.au/|access-date=19 January 2015|archive-date=9 January 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150109090015/http://www.internationallanguageacademy.com.au/|url-status=dead}} which trains TESOL teachers in Southeast Asia.{{cite news|title=Keith Wright says sorry for sexual sins that landed him in jail|date=18 December 2009|work=The Courier-Mail|url=http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/queensland/keith-wright-says-sorry-for-sexual-sins-that-landed-him-in-jail/story-e6freoof-1225811521901}}

Wright died in Vietnam on 13 January 2015, aged 73.{{cite news|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-01-13/disgraced-former-labor-leader-keith-wright-dies-in-vietnam/6014558|title=Disgraced former Queensland Labor leader Keith Wright dies in Vietnam|access-date=13 January 2015}}