One Nation has defended leaving voters fewer than four months to run the ruler over its Victorian candidates and policies, as the populist party makes an ambitious play to govern alone.
Former army veteran and One Nation state president Warren Pickering will lead the party to the Victorian state election in November.
Federal Leader Pauline Hanson was in Melbourne on Monday to officially announce the 43-year-old as the party’s state chief and unveil its eight lead upper house candidates in each region.
Senator Hanson barred mainstream news outlets The Age, ABC and The Guardian from the press conference, citing perceived bias and unfair reporting.
“I want truth and honesty,” she told reporters.
“You get it from me. I expect it back from the media.”
Mr Pickering defended the decision, stating the party was open to scrutiny but would take “swift legal action” against character assassination attempts.
Senator Hanson said she was proud to have Mr Pickering lead the party as he runs for the lower house seat of Pakenham in Melbourne’s outer southeast.
Mr Pickering dismissed talk of forming a coalition with the Liberal-Nationals in the event of a hung parliament.
“We intend for this to be a November to remember, and we are contesting to govern,” he said.
Mr Pickering bristled at suggestions One Nation’s decision to drip feed candidates and policy had put voters at a disadvantage, declaring the party needed to keep its cards close to its chest.
“We need to play to every strategic advantage we’ve got,” he said.
“It’s finding that balance between giving them ample time to get out there and engage with their communities and making sure that we’ve done our due diligence and trained those candidates to the standard that we want.”
After vetting more than 1200 potential candidates, the party plans to run in every lower house seat.
One Nation will soon release major policies, including a detailed plan to recruit more officers and fill unmanned police stations.
Asked how the party planned to fund the recruits, Mr Pickering cited waste on Melbourne’s Suburban Rail Loop, renewable energy projects and Victoria’s statewide treaty.
One Nation’s leading Legislative Council candidates include Shepparton-based MP Rikkie-Lee Tyrrell and education expert Colleen Harkin.
Ms Tyrrell became the first One Nation MP elected to Victorian parliament in 2022, while Ms Harkin quit the Liberal Party after she initiated legal action over a $1.55 million loan paid to save former opposition leader John Pesutto from bankruptcy.
Other candidates are animator and company director Mark Nicholson, lawyer Aaron Sanford, office manager Natalie Adams, Geelong councillor Chris Burson and human resources manager Fiona Lopez.
Senator Hanson is slated to host a meet-the-candidates forum on Monday night.
Premier Ben Carroll and other Labor figures have warned Victoria could be headed for the first minority government in Australia that includes One Nation.
Opposition Leader Jess Wilson has previously ruled out an alliance with One Nation, maintaining her focus is on winning with a majority.
Nationally, support for One Nation has risen two points to 31 per cent, according to a Redbridge Group/Accent Research poll published by the Australian Financial Review on Monday.
But the populist party is not polling as well in Victoria.
The latest Newspoll indicated the Victorian coalition was leading on primary vote at 31 per cent, followed by Labor (28 per cent) and One Nation (19 per cent).
It gave the Liberal-Nationals the edge over Labor on a two-party-preferred basis, 52 per cent to 48 per cent.
The coalition needs a net gain of 16 seats to form a majority government.
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