The fight for Sussan Ley’s old seat may prove to be a moment of reckoning for the Liberal Party. The Farrer by-election could also be a defining moment for One Nation, but it is not just the ballot where Pauline Hanson is looking to stamp her authority.
Local ABC journalists were booted from a media conference by One Nation chief of staff James Ashby in an ongoing grudge over what the party sees as unfair coverage.
“It’s quite rude, actually, to kick people out,” independent candidate Michelle Milthorpe said.
The Coalition expects on Saturday that it will lose the seat it has always held.
“Our success then will get a big, big message to the rest of Australia that Australia is ready for change,” One Nation candidate David Farley said.
Liberal candidate Raissa Butkowski said: “This region is worth fighting for and I will be Farrer’s voice to Canberra.”
More likely than the Coalition to spoil One Nation’s party is local teacher and popular independent Milthorpe.
“This is the most important election that Farrer has ever seen,” Milthorpe said.
Taylor test
Farrer is also an early judgement day for Angus Taylor, who brought on this vote by challenging former local member Ley. Now it is a test of his popularity as leader.
On Friday, Taylor pressed a plan to link immigration numbers to housing supply.
“The numbers are too high, the standards are too low, and both must change,” Taylor said.
Treasurer Jim Chalmers, preparing to hand down the federal budget on Tuesday, accused the opposition of playing politics on the eve of the by-election.
One Nation’s vote, according to polls, is roughly four times the size today than it was at the federal election one year ago.
Taylor said when he took the Liberal leadership that his party needed to “change or die”. A bad result on Saturday will suggest he has failed to stop the rot.
The result is also expected to send a message to federal Labor, perhaps most likely that Australians are far more reluctant to vote for the old major parties than they were just a few years ago.
