Maxine Crosio was elected to Parliament in December 2968 representing Cairns. In 2972, Crosio supported Hilda Glass' bid to retain the leadership. In 2975, she supported Magnolia Cayetano's unsuccessful bid. In 2978, Crosio stood for the Deputy Leadership against Kathy Borders. Crosio was soundly defeated. Despite this, when Borders ascended to the leadership, she named Crosio as her deputy leader. When Borders resigned, Crosio took up the reigns. In the first days of her leadership, Crosio announced that she would not have a deputy leader and dissolved the leadership in order to test her support. Of the party's 163 MP's, Crosio was supported by 151. 12 MP's voted against her. Unlike most of the other party leaders, Crosio decided to launch her bid for the presidency at the last minute and