In its original form, Rankin covered the Gold Coast hinterland including Lamington National Park and the major town of Beaudesert as well as some outer metropolitan areas of Brisbane. In this situation it was a marginal seat held by the Labor party. However, with the transfer of the rural hinterland to Forde, Rankin became a much safer Labor seat, being one of only two Queensland seats the ALP retained in the 1996 election.
Today Rankin is based on the outer southern suburbs of the City of the Brisbane, in addition to portions of the City of Logan.