Regional voters consider their options as One Nation popularity surges

Voters consider alternatives to major political parties as One Nation popularity surges Tue 2 Jun 2026 at 5:33am In short: Regional Queensland voters say they are considering abandoning major political parties in future federal elections. Pauline Hanson's right-wing populist party One Nation has surged ahead of Labor in an opinion poll for the first time. What's next? A political scientist says it is too early to know whether the popularity surge will affect future federal elections. For the first time, the right-wing populist political party One Nation leads against both major political parties in an opinion poll. A survey of about 1,000 people by RedBridge Group and Accent Research, published this week by the Australian Financial Review, revealed the party outpolled Labor at 30 per cent compared to 28 per cent. Eighteen-year-old Jake Tanti is one of many regional Queenslanders considering whether the party will pick up his vote in future elections. In the state's north, the Mackay resident was not old enough to vote in the 2025 federal election, but said his desire to own a home one day was top of mind. He said he was not aware of any party's housing policies for first home owners, but One Nation had captured his attention. "I've seen clips of the Senate from Pauline Hanson the most out of any politician on social media entirely,"he said. "It has mainly been One Nation, on my social media anyway, appearing." Voters captivated by party leader It is not just new media influencing voter sentiment in the region. Noel Flor typically voted for the Coalition, but said the party was not keeping the general public in view, and he believed Labor had "gone to the pots". He said that in the next federal election, One Nation could pick up his vote. "I think Pauline Hanson is doing a good job … what she says makes sense,"he said. Peter Comino lives in Rockhampton in central Queensland in the federal seat of Capricornia, which has been held by the National Party's Michelle Landry since 2013. Mr Comino said he was "not happy" with Australian politics and would reconsider who to vote for in the next election. "People have realised that these major parties haven't been listening for decades and we're getting sick of it," he said. Holidaying in nearby Yeppoon, Victorian couple Colleen and Jim Bunny typically voted Labor, a move they said they would not repeat come the federal election in 2028. "Labor and Liberal are so far behind the eight ball with what the people want," Ms Bunny said. "I'm not a fan of [Pauline Hanson], but she's saying what people want … I think she's doing well." Mr Bunny agreed and said he believed Senator Hanson had become more eloquent over her years in politics. "She's not shooting so much from the hip now like she used to … she's listening to the people and what needs to be done," he said. Off the back of the poll results, Senator Hanson told ABC Radio Brisbane she had the ability to be prime minister "if that's what people want". "At the moment, I'm head of the party. I'm leader of the party. Would I be able to do the job? I believe that I could," she said on Monday. "I do believe I have the ability, but it's another year and a half outside of an election," she said. Senator Hanson said she had not ruled out vying for a lower house seat ahead of the next election. Rise of minor party decades in the making In last year's federal election, One Nation received about 6 per cent of the national vote. Yet in the year to date, the party has passed the Coalition and now Labor in the polls, collected more primary votes than the Liberals in the recent South Australian election and won its first seat in the Farrer by-election. Griffith University political scientist Sarah Cameron said the party's rise had been brewing across decades. "Political partisanship for the major parties has reached record lows in recent elections … people are feeling increasingly detached," Dr Cameron said. "Another long-term trend is growing voter volatility. It used to be that Australians would consistently vote the same way every election. That has gradually declined. "We have a situation where people aren't feeling close to the major parties. They're open to switching their vote from election to election." Dr Cameron said short-term factors in election campaigns, including issues and party leaders, were now more important. "It's no longer the case people have determined their vote far in advance," she said. "This creates a lot of unpredictability to determine what might happen at the next election." But declining trust and sentiment toward the two major parties were not yet enough to return a significant result for minor parties or independents at the next federal election, Dr Cameron said. "It does create an opportunity for alternative actors to mount campaigns that tap into voter frustration,"she said. "This isn't something that has just been seen in Australia … it's been observed around the world."