Following the Farrer earthquake, there’s a bigger political event to come

May 11, 2026 — 5:00am

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In politics – as in life – you cannot know what a thing will feel like until it happens. An obvious statement, perhaps. But Saturday night reminded us that it is one of the most important rules in politics. David Farley’s victory for One Nation in Farrer was widely anticipated. And yet it felt like an explosion.

On many occasions, Pauline Hanson has spoken of getting “our country back”. But in Farrer, in the aftermath of that shockingly decisive victory, the same phrase landed differently. As Rob Harris wrote, the result was “what that looked like in practice”. To her supporters, it no doubt now felt like a prophecy. To many of the rest of us it felt, suddenly, dangerous – closer to a threat.

Hanson’s triumph has, too, changed the atmosphere into which the Albanese government’s budget will arrive tomorrow.

Labor did not run a candidate in Farrer. But Labor has, over recent months, attempted to mount an argument against One Nation: that while it promises to stand up for workers, in practice it fails them. On Saturday night, it became blindingly obvious those arguments have not made a bit of difference. What use are politicians’ words to angry voters?

Actions, though – that may be a different story. Of course, we don’t know with certainty what is in the budget or how it all fits together. Recall how much Labor enjoyed, last budget, surprising everyone with tax cuts. Not long ago,........

© The Age