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Hanson is setting her sights on gaining seats in the upcoming November state election, while firmly rejecting the notion that her rising popularity in the polls is merely a result of widespread discontent with the major political parties.
“The most significant factor is the rising crime rates plaguing Victoria. The police force hasn’t been expanded to match the growing population,” she stated. “They’ve let everything deteriorate.”
Political analysts have cautioned that the seismic shift caused by One Nation in South Australia could very well ripple through Victoria.
Recent surveys conducted earlier this month indicate that One Nation is closely trailing the Coalition, securing 23-24 percent of the vote.
Two polls conducted earlier this month place One Nation on the Coalition’s tail with 23-24 per cent of the vote.
One Nation’s representation in Victoria is thin after failing to secure any seats in the 2022 state election, but the party’s success in SA after clinching two lower house seats could pave the way for a similar rise.
The Liberal party’s disastrous result in SA could spell doom for both Opposition Leader Jess Wilson, a first-term MP who stepped up to the plate in November following a leadership coup against Brad Battin, and embattled Premier Jacinta Allan’s Labor party.
Both parties bled voters to One Nation in SA and the orange lightning bolt could strike already-shaky ground in regional and outer suburban seats.
”I keep saying all the time, Victoria is a basket case. And a lot of our new membership is coming out of Victoria,” Hanson said.
“People actually want representation in Victoria from One Nation.
“They’re screaming out for it. They’re crying out for it.”
Before Victorians head to the polls, a byelection will be held in the seat of Farrer in south-west NSW, a seat vacated by former opposition leader Sussan Ley.
David Farley is One Nation’s federal candidate for Farrer, where Hanson’s party will focus sharply on the region’s water issues.
“The the main thing that we’re gonna home in on there is protect[ing] the farming sector,” Hanson added.
“But the big one is gonna be the water issue with the Murray-Darling [Basin]. That has never been sorted out.”
Hanson rebranded from Pauline Hanson’s One Nation to simply One Nation last year.
Dropping Hanson’s name from the ballot appears to have worked wonders for the conservative party, particularly after poaching former Nationals MP Barnaby Joyce and recruiting former SA Liberal senator Cory Bernardi.
But Hanson laughed off any suggestion that she has an image problem.
“I’m not interested in what they say,” she said.
“I can tell you, I think I’m the only political party that hasn’t had a challenge [of] leadership.
“So that tells you something.”
Both the LNP and Nationals have changed federal leaders in 2026. Labor has not changed leadership.
Voter disaffection from the Coalition’s split has been partly credited for One Nation’s surge in popularity.
Hanson denied this is the case.
“That’s a decision that the public have to make. But they had the opportunity to vote for the Liberals in South Australia and clearly they didn’t want to,” she said.
“And the Coalition was back.”
She cited the Coalition’s failure to unite on net zero and the Paris Agreement as the crux of its internal problems.
Hanson also claimed the LNP and Nationals can’t agree on an immigration policy.
But as a new legion of voters move away from the major parties, there are no plans yet for a major policy refresh – and certainly no softening on immigration.
“The problem in the country is because of mass migration,” Hanson claimed, citing an unproven figure of 1800 migrants entering Australia each day.
This figure, loosely taken from Overseas Arrivals and Departures (OAD) data, does not accurately reflect the number of migrants coming to the country
“That’s not the Australia I grew up in,” she added.
“Those policies, we’re actually going to be taking to the next federal election.”
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