State cabinet ministers will be armed with sunscreen and broad-brimmed hats when they head to the parched mid-north later this week in their crisply ironed chinos.

The entire team descends on Mallala and Two Wells on Thursday, where potentially angry political dust is far from settling.

There could also be an impromptu political anointment by the Premier, which may take many by surprise. Keep reading for that exclusive revelation.

Fresh from the momentous and eager crowd greeting during his Whyalla steelworks intervention, a darker mood is likely to greet Peter Malinauskas in the state seat of Frome.

This region is a focal point in helping solve the state’s housing crisis but is also in the grip of record bone-dry conditions and a thirsty lack of water infrastructure.

Some of these small communities now must truck water in to supplement their critically low tank storages.

So, will they be eyeing off some of the financial relief already enjoyed by other worthy recipients in the Upper Spencer Gulf?

Frome, soon to be renamed Ngadjuri, could become an unfamiliar battleground in March next year.

It’s safely held by Liberal MP Penny Pratt, who’s........

© InDaily