The race to the Queensland election looks set to be a photo finish after runaway leader the Liberal National Party stumbled in crucial last polling.

Premier Steven Miles has ruled out the prospect of a minority government, saying no deals will be done to extend Labor’s remarkable run.

The LNP opposition has its nose in front ahead of Saturday’s poll but the Labor government has gained ground with the chequered flag in sight.

A Newspoll conducted for The Australian shows Miles rated as a better premier at 45 per cent compared with 42 per cent for LNP leader David Crisafulli.

The poll of 1151 Queenslanders conducted between October 18 and Thursday also shows the Miles government is up 2.5 points to 47.5 per cent on a two-party-preferred basis, with the opposition down 2.5 points to 52.5 per cent.

It comes after Crisafulli dominated early polling and looked on track to end Labor’s nine-year reign in a landslide.

Labor has governed Queensland for 30 of the past 35 years.

On Friday, Crisafulli appeared unfazed by the latest results after being accused of squandering a winning margin.

“It shows you how difficult changing government to my side of politics is in Queensland – we remain the underdog,” he told ABC TV.

Labor polling, seen by The Courier-Mail, shows Katter’s Australian Party winning two out of three seats in Townsville.

Crisafulli had been relying on winning all three seats to secure a majority government on Saturday.

He said he had heard Labor was striking deals with the Katter party in the regions and the Greens in south-east Queensland to form a minority government if Saturday’s result is tight.

“We will get a minor parliament that will be, quite frankly, bedlam,” Crisafulli said.

But Miles said he was aiming to win a term in his own right after taking the reins from Annastacia Palaszczuk, who resigned last December.

“I have spent 10 months showing … the kind of premier I would be,” he told ABC TV.

“There will be no deals with minor parties.”

Crisafulli has campaigned hard on youth crime, along with the election’s other key issues of health, housing and cost of living. Despite that, he has been accused of being a small target.

He repeatedly refused to explain how he could guarantee no changes to abortion laws after KAP leader Robbie Katter said two weeks ago he would introduce a private members’ bill to repeal abortion laws “quick as you like” after the election.

Katter walked back the controversial pledge this week, saying he would actually introduce a baby born alive protection bill if re-elected.

But it was too late to prevent abortion, which was decriminalised in Queensland in 2018, becoming a hot button in the lead-up to Saturday’s vote and putting pressure on Crisafulli.

The LNP also waited until two days before the poll to release its costings. It has provided no detail on a Brisbane 2032 Olympic infrastructure review or pumped hydro alternatives integral to Queensland’s renewable energy transition.

“Voters have started to see David Crisafulli,” Miles said.

“They have started to see some of the risks that could come with change.”

But Crisafulli accused Miles of running a scare campaign.

“We haven’t wavered from giving Queenslanders hope over that fear – I am choosing hope over fear,” he said.

Federal Opposition Leader Peter Dutton backed Crisafulli to end Labor’s Queensland dominance.

“I think David’s run a great campaign. I think Queensland is ready for a fresh start,” he said on the Sunshine Coast on Friday.

Miles will visit 36 seats in 36 hours by 7pm AEST on Friday in a last-ditch campaign blitz.

Crisafulli is also pressing the flesh, and hit up a dozen electorates on Thursday alone.

The government has made $9.7 billion in election commitments and the LNP $7.12 billion.

-with AAP