Pauline Hanson has declared she is not too old for parliament as the One Nation leader turns 72, vowing to stay on unless her health deteriorates.
Speaking on 2GB radio on Monday, just days after her birthday, the senator said she would only step down if she became like former US president Joe Biden.
“I’ll let the people know this. I’ve already told my staff, if I become like a Joe Biden, just tap me on the shoulder and give me the heel to move on,” Senator Hanson said.
“It will come down to my health. I’ve got nothing wrong with me. I take no medication, nothing. I’ve got more energy in me than a lot of these other people.”
Without naming names, Senator Hanson claimed another MP should retire due to age. “My staff are flat out keeping up with me from eight o’clock in the morning till 10, 11 o’clock at night. I can still run down the halls of parliament in my heels when I have to get to the chamber, so don’t underestimate me,” she said.
Her reference to Biden is unsurprising given her admiration for his rival, Donald Trump. Senator Hanson praised Trump’s policies at the Conservative Political Action Conference at Mar-a-Lago last November, calling him a “re-energised, strong and patriotic leader”.
“I hate to say it, but the Australian Labor Party will never make Australia great again despite a desperate need to turn our country around,” she told the conference.
“I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again, you can’t blame those migrants who want to come to Australia, you can only blame the government. And this is an Australian government that does not care about the welfare of its own people.”
Support for One Nation is soaring on voter backlash to the federal budget, with the party overtaking Labor for the first time. The latest AFR/Redbridge Group/Accent Research poll shows One Nation’s primary vote rose four points to 31%, while Labor fell three points to 28%. The Coalition dropped from 22% to 20%.
RedBridge Group director Kos Samaras said the two-party system was “gone”. “The real contest, unless something changes by 2028, now runs between Labor and One Nation, and the Coalition is a spectator in the stands … eating doughnuts,” he said.
