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Research essay - does Pauline Hanson's one nation party have a future?...

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Assignment 3B: Research Essay

Does Pauline Hanson's One Nation party have a future?

Submitted as a POL10001 Research Essay Due date: June 5 2020 eLA: Bryan Cranston Word count: 2265

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Pauline Hanson exploded onto the Australian political stage in 1996, her colourful look and her contentious rhetoric along with her divisive viewpoints regarding race and immigration ensured she stood out from other politicians at the time. She spoke directly to the people, tapping into their idealistic desire to live in the Australia of old, and their fears relating to different cultures and races. Initially her popularity may have appeared to be an anomaly. Still, populists are rising and overturning established political norms across the world, utilising inflammatory and provocative rhetoric that once would have been absurd. One Nation rose a second time in the 2016 federal election shocking Australian politics once more, with four One Nation candidates elected to the Senate. This paper will examine Ms Hanson's unconventional journey from dissident liberal candidate to victorious Australian Senator. Her dramatic downfall, and re-birth into Australian politics along with the party's core values, ideology and support base. Endeavouring to determine if Pauline Hanson's One Nation party (PHONP) does indeed have a future in the Australian political landscape and the challenges they will face to achieve this. Pauline Hanson lost her Liberal party endorsement before the 1996 election. Her controversial letters to the Queensland Times and Courier-Mail accusing the government of preferential treatment towards Aboriginals at the expense of ‘white’ Australians galvanised the Liberal party to distance themselves from her. However, Ms Hanson’s divisive messaging garnered much support, particularly at the ‘urban fringe’ of Queensland’s larger cities and she went on, standing as an independent, to win Labors previously safe seat of Oxley at the federal election (Davis and Stimson 1998, p. 81). The following year, PHONP was born, founded by Pauline and her two associates David Oldfield, and David Ettridge. It achieved unprecedented success in the 1998 Queensland state election securing the support of one in four voters (Saunders 2005, p.75). Astounding for mainstream politics with the ALP alone losing six seats to new and inexperienced One Nation candidates (Saunders 2005, p. 77). The

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party was deregistered in 1999, accused of misrepresenting the number of their members (Kingston 2001, p. 14). Reregistering again in January 2001 (Saunders 2005, p. 78). PHONP largely disappeared until its re-emergence in the 2016 election. It is impossible to think about the One Nation party without thinking about Pauline Hanson the two intertwined as one. Pauline Hanson presents as a true-blue Aussie battler, a struggling single mother, and owner of a humble fish and chip shop, likewise the PHONP portrays itself as unpretentious and standing for small communities. However, Perera (1998, p. 204) points out that PHONP’s corporate structure is in opposition to this perception and highlights Ms Hanson’s land holdings and financial statements as contrary to her media persona (Perera 1998, p. 204, 207). PHONP's ideology is a right-wing, anti-immigration populist party that embraces an Australian nativist attitude (Perera 1998, p. 199). PHONP holds an unsympathetic view towards aboriginal reconciliation and immigration. These viewpoints result in opposition to multiculturalism (Ben-Moshe 2001, p. 25), evidenced by Ms Hanson's maiden speech (Pauline Hanson’s Please Explain 2016). She railed against Australia's indigenous people and multiculturalism, saying in 1996 that Australia would be swamped by Asians, reiterating the sentiment in 2016 switching the narrative to being swamped by Muslims (Deutchman 2000, p. 51; Gordon 2003). Newspapers including the Age and the Sydney Morning Herald linked Pauline's name with Nazism, and Hitler once jailed for electoral fraud (Switzer cited in Saunders 2005, p. 75). Although PHONP did not explicitly invite open racist groups into the party, they certainly did not disavow them (BenMoshe 2001, p.25, 40), normalising far-right ideologies. The core values of the party are congruent with their ideology running on a platform of anti-establishment (Switzer 2003, p. 36), and anti-system with core beliefs centred around immigration and race (Ghazarian 2015, p. 115). Perera (1998, p. 207) says that Hansonism helped to create an Australia unsympathetic to immigrants and has shifted the political

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agenda towards endorsing ‘white’ Australia at the cost of the indigenous people and their land rights. Ms Hanson states she stands against political correctness and uses her platform to speak out on taboo subjects standing with Australians that are doing it tough (Ghazarian 2015, p. 115; Pauline Hanson’s One Nation 2017b). Pauline Hanson's principal area of support has historically been on the ‘urban fringe’ at the edge of cities and regional centres. Where blue-collar workers are trying to achieve the Australian dream of owning their own home, typically male, unskilled workers in proletarian industries, living in the gun belt (Davis & Stimson 1998, p. 81). Although ONP voters tend to have less university education, they were wealthier, more liberal than previously thought and were almost entirely Australian born (Marr, 2017). Usually, these voters have little interaction with indigenous aboriginals, and these areas tend to house fewer international people. However, inner cities exposed to multiculturalism tend to vote for the major parties. (Davis & Stimson 1998, p. 81). Marr (2017) agreed that the majority of PHONP voters were male, however, points out more women voted for PHONP in 2016 (44%) than 1998 (35%) significantly increasing the female vote. Horn (2017) interviewed PHONP voters and found they feel ignored, want changes, and have had enough of conventional politics. PHONP website outlines various policies including but not limited to, bringing back Australian values, immigration, and foreign ownership (Pauline Hanson’s One Nation 2017). Few of the party's policies are backed by research with the bulk of them containing only opinions, too simple to implement. For example, the affordable energy and cost of living policy includes a brief paragraph committing to implement cheaper power but does not explain how they will achieve that goal (Pauline Hanson’s One Nation 2017). Salisbury (2019) says PHONP policies are extreme and inconsistent. As an example, senior staff members, Mr Ashby and Mr Dickson, approached the NRA seeking political donations of millions of dollars. Informing the NRA, they could have Australian politicians by their

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genitals, potentially changing the way Australians vote. Congruently, Ms Hanson was supporting the ban of foreign donations publicly (Karp 2019). One challenge PHONP faces to stay relevant is to develop their policies, so they have substance and are implementable. It has been argued that PHONP use simple proposals to address complicated political matters (Ghazarian 2015, p. 113). Hutchens (2017) argues that it is impossible to rigorously analyse One Nation policies as there is a substantial lack of information, devoid of costings or timelines. Voters surveyed by Goot and Watson (2001, p. 165) reportedly liked the policies of ONP; however, they were unable to identify policies they supported. When pushed said, they valued Ms Hanson's views on immigration and her ability to say what they were thinking. McAllister cited in Marr (2017) says Ms Hanson had more defined policies in her first rise, but this time around it seems she does not stand for anything other than anti-establishment. A second challenge PHONP faces to remain a viable player is the lack of stability within the leadership team. PHONP is known for its high turnaround of representatives across time and the party's inhouse feuding (Saunders 2005, p. 76). Remeikis (2018) points out the glaring problem within PHONP's power structure that situates Ms Hanson as the head of the organisation with only a couple of other people with real power, the rest being mostly the cheer squad. At the time of Remeikis’s (2018) article, over 70% of all state and federal representatives had either quit the party or were expelled, and only three of the twenty representatives completed their entire term. In recent times Rodney Culleton left the party in 2016 saying he was subject to un-Australian behaviour and personal attacks, accusing Ms Hanson of not being a team player (Karp 2016). In June 2018, Brian Burston, Ms Hanson’s close friend, shockingly quit the party, saying that Pauline was running One Nation as a dictatorship (Remeikis 2018). With Burston gone the four seats, she began with in the Senate became two, weakening her bargaining position and highlighting the dissatisfaction within the party.

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A further challenge for PHONP is their over-reliance on enigmatic leadership, Ghazarian (2015, p. 114) believes Ms Hanson is more popular than the party itself and speculates the party may not be able to exist without her. Saunders (2005, p.73, 74) discusses how a woman as tawdrily attired, ignorant, and inarticulate as Ms Hanson could achieve the ardent following she has if not for charisma. Marr (2017) says the success of the party depends on Pauline Hanson transitioning the party from charismatic into one that can generate coherent policies based on the party’s ideologies and strongly supported by her delegates in the field.

When considering if PHONP has a future, it is crucial to understand the traits of a populist leader. Populists are rising and overturning established political norms across the world, utilising inflammatory and provocative rhetoric that once would have been unthinkable (Charlton & Harris 2016; Sengul 2020, p. 20). Monro (2019, p. 226) says populism is normal politics interrupted and Charlton and Harris (2016) state that voters feel disempowered and that is the real sentiment driving this change, not necessarily the xenophobic rhetoric. Populist leaders tend to come to power when voters are feeling disenchanted with mainstream politics (Gordon 2003). Deutchman (2000, p. 62) suggests that PHONP tapped into the simmering anger Australian people had been fermenting. The loss of services and rising unemployment attributed to globalisation and economic rationalism, these voters, amongst other things believed they would lose jobs to the immigrants. Pauline Hanson is empathetic to people who are still trying to hold tight to the idealistic country of old. These people who have been impacted by globalism and believe the government is looking after immigrants and aboriginals better than ‘white’ Australians (Forrest et al. 2017, p. 458). People related to her and did not care that she was not articulate, and her lack of apparent confidence was a drawcard to people who felt she was just like them. Voters who felt ignored loved her (Gordon 2003). Pauline Hanson, like other right-wing populists, engage their

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supporters by behaving as if they are one of them, a common man, an Aussie battler, standing up and fighting on the people’s behalf (Charlton & Harris 2016) and she does this very well. Charlton and Harris (2016) believe our political system will change dramatically over the coming years, as the major two parties in Australia are not what the public want and voters are casting ballots for independents and minor parties in droves. This style of voting is not a new phenomenon, back in 1998 voters were asked why they voted for ONP they responded by saying 'she understands what ordinary Australians want' (Davis & Stimson 1998, p. 72). Goot and Watson (2001, p. 192) along with Monro (2019, p. 225) agree saying traditional parties are not giving the voters what they want. But why have we seen a rise in the minor party vote? It is argued that the two major parties have become too much like each other. Both chasing the centralist voter and voters have nowhere else to go now that the parties have converged (Alexander 2017; Deutchman 2000, p. 60; McSwiney & Cottle 2017, p. 99). PHONP has turned the Australian dialogue away from multiculturalism and rights for minorities towards intolerance and fear of different cultures and races (Perera 1998, p. 199). Murphy (2016, p. 9) believes it is fear that drives PHONP’s punitive policies and ideology, particularly against refugees. Sengul (2020, p. 20) conveys that Ms Hanson uses the language of fear and crisis from her populist platform to extend her base. She uses ‘dangerous other’ speech to generate fear to serve her agenda and to justify hostile policies, including immigration bans and restrictions on religious freedoms. Appealing to voters who already implicitly think this way by asserting ‘dangerous others’ are a threat to the security of Australia, and to the Australian way of life. Apprehension of races and religion have long been a part of Australia's history, and Baker (2019) contends that this attitude is still apparent in some communities. Ms Hanson exploits the deepest fears of her constituents very cleverly.

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For PHONP to secure a sustainable future, they will need to ensure stability within their ranks as a matter of urgency. In early 2000 internal brawling effectively led to the downfall of the party; Ms Hanson must learn to manage her team more effectively moving forward. Developing a coherent policy plan based on the party’s ideologies and core values, with senior representatives committing to pursuing the policies in office will be essential. Creating policies for politics and not for protest will build much-needed credibility for voters that currently do not support PHONP. Australians are becoming disillusioned with politics, and while the two major parties play 'politics as usual', PHONP will thrive. PHONP may well see a future in Australian politics if minor parties continue to maintain strong bases, there is an excellent chance that Australian politics will look fundamentally different in the coming years. PHONP can have a secure future, as the future of major parties are also uncertain. Perhaps the Liberal or Labor party will cease to exist, or the major parties will create alliances with the independents or minor parties moving forwards. It is also possible that one or both major parties could become populists themselves, either way, the two major parties cannot remain in a centralist position without some impact. Regardless of what happens with Pauline Hanson's One Nation party, it is a given that the future of the Australian political climate will be considerably different to the past.

References

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Alexander, D 2017, POL10001: Australian Politics, learning materials on Blackboard, Swinburne University of Technology, viewed 20 May 2020. Baker, N 2019, Please explain: The history of Pauline Hanson’s One Nation party, SBS News, viewed 29 May 2020, . Ben-Moshe, D 2001, 'One Nation and the Australian far right', Patterns of Prejudice, vol. 35, no. 3, pp. 24-40. Charlton, A & Harris, L 2016, 'A pox on both your houses', The Monthly, December 2016, viewed 22 April 2020, . Davis, R & Stimson, R 1998, 'Disillusionment and disenchantment at the fringe: explaining the geography of the One Nation Party vote at the Queensland election', People and Place, vol. 6, no. 3, pp. 69-82. Deutchman, I 2000, Pauline Hanson and the rise and fall of the radical right in Australia, Patterns of Prejudice, vol. 34, no. 1, pp. 49-62. Forrest, J Johnston, R Siciliano, F Manley, D & Jones, K 2017, ‘Are Australia's suburbs swamped by Asians and Muslims? Countering political claims with data', Australian Geographer, vol. 48, no. 4, pp. 457-472. Ghazarian, Z 2015, The Making of a Party System: Minor Parties in the Australian Senate, Monash University Publishing, EBSCOhost Ebook Academic Collection. .

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Goot, M, & Watson, I 2001, One Nation’s Electoral Support: Where Does It Come From, What Makes It Different and How Does It Fit? Australian Journal of Politics and History, Vol.47, no. 2, pp. 159-191. Gordon, M 2003, ‘A martyr to the end’, The Age, 23 August, viewed 20 May 2020, . Horn, A 2017, Queensland election: ‘They think we’re idiots’ Why people are voting One Nation, ABC News, 11 November, viewed 1 May 2020, . Hutchens, G 2017, Queensland polls: One Nation policies leave economists stumped, The Guardian Australia edition, 25 November, viewed 29 May 2020, . Karp, P 2016, Rodney Culleton quits One nation citing ‘un-Australian behaviour’, The Guardian Australia edition, 19 December, viewed 29 May 2020, . Karp, P 2019, One Nation’s James Ashby filmed seeking $20m from NRA to weaken Australia’s gun laws, The guardian Australia edition, 26 March, viewed 29 May 2020, . Kingston, M 2001, Off the rails: the Pauline Hanson trip. Allen & Unwin, Ebook Central (ProQuest).

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Marr, D 2017, ‘Looking back, and angry; what drives Pauline Hanson’s voters’, The Guardian, 27 March, viewed 15 May 2020, .

McSwiney, J & Cottle, D 2017, 'Unintended consequences: One nation and Neoliberalism in contemporary Australia', Journal of Australian Political Economy, vol. 79, pp. 87-106. Monro, D 2019, Populism? Minor parties and independents in the Australian Federal Parliament, 1945–2016, Policy Studies, vol.40, no. 2, pp. 225-240. Murphy, K 2016, ‘Fear and loathing in One Nation’s Australia’ Eureka Street, 11 August, Vol. 26, no. 15, pp. 8-10, viewed 1 May 2020 < https://www.eurekastreet.com.au/article/fear-andloathing-in-one-nation-s-australia>. Pauline Hanson’s One Nation 2017, Federal policies, Pauline Hanson’s One Nation, viewed 22 April 2020, . Pauline Hanson’s One Nation 2017(b), about Pauline, Pauline Hanson’s One Nation, viewed 22 April 2020, . Pauline Hanson’s Please Explain 2016, Pauline Hanson Maiden speech IN FULL September 10, 1996, 30 August, viewed 1 May, 2020, . Perera, S 1998, 'The level playing field: Hansonism, globalisation, racism, Race and Class, vol. 40, no. 2-3 pp. 199-208. Remeikis, A 2018, 'Party is doomed': common theme in gripes of former One Nation members, The Guardian Australia Edition, 16 June, viewed 27 May 2020, .

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Salisbury, C 2019, One Nation, guns and the Queensland question: what does it all mean for the 2019 federal election? The Conversation, 29 March, viewed 30 May 2020, . Saunders, K 2005, 'Taking the international spotlight: Pauline Hanson and Pauline Hanson's One Nation Party, Queensland Review, vol. 12, no. 2, pp. 73-80. Sengul, K 2020, ‘Swamped’: the populist construction of fear, crisis and dangerous others in Pauline Hanson’s senate speeches, Communication research and practice, vol. 6, no.1, pp. 20-37. Switzer, T 2003, 'On the death of Hansonism', Quadrant, vol. 47, no. 10, pp. 36-39....