Does Pauline Hanson's claim of growing support in the ACT pass the pub test?

Australian Senator and One Nation leader Pauline Hanson told the National Press Club she did not like visiting Canberra. Link copiedShareShare articleAfter decades of Labor government in the ACT and no local representation by the Coalition in federal parliament since 2022, the conventional wisdom is that Canberra is a largely left-leaning city. But the national capital is now among places in One Nation's sights as support for the party surges across the country. In her address to the National Press Club earlier this month, One Nation leader Pauline Hanson said she tried to keep out of Canberra "as much as possible". But she said the party had rising support locally — including at the Kingston Hotel in the city's leafy inner south. "It's going extremely well here," Senator Hanson said of Canberra. Pauline Hanson addressed the National Press Club, claiming she had support in the ACT. (ABC News: Adam Kennedy) "Go to the Kingo. I tell you, I just get so many people come up to me wanting photos and to talk to me, and they're really pleased to see me." Peter, now retired, had spent decades managing golf clubs in north Queensland. Returning to Canberra to visit family — and to the Kingo to catch up with a mate — he said he did not have much love for One Nation. Peter says the Canberra community does not support Pauline Hanson. (ABC News: Harry Frost) "I think it's naive, the way she thinks. "We're not as naive or blasé as what she possibly imagines or what that ideology imagines. Donna, who lives nearby, said Senator Hanson had her backing. One Nation supporter Donna says Pauline Hanson wants to "keep the Australian culture alive". (ABC News: Harry Frost) "I think that she actually does support the Australian people and would love to keep the Australian culture alive and for me, that's really important," she said. "Especially in the line of work that I do — working with the underprivileged and the disabled people — I think she would be definitely up there supporting us and supporting us in that realm of working life. Jake, a tradie from Queanbeyan and a former Liberal voter, said he was also a big fan of Pauline Hanson and lamented the slow trade at the pub as a symptom of cost-of-living pressures. Pauline Hanson recently claimed she had supporters who liked to go to the Kingston Hotel in Canberra's south. (ABC News: Harry Frost) "Everyone's paying through the nose. There's no one here," he said. "Look at the country now. It's gone to shit. You can't say it hasn't. "Australia needs to change, mate. Badly." In the 2022 federal election, when One Nation last ran candidates in the ACT, it only received 2.4 per cent of the territory's vote. The party also faced questions about whether its candidates had actually campaigned in the seats they were contesting. One Nation's website spruiks the launch of a party branch in November last year. "There's a void in the ACT's local parliament, and One Nation is ready to fill it," the website says. Senator Hanson told the National Press Club the branch's first meeting was attended by "over 200 people". One Nation leader Pauline Hanson has the support of mining magnate Gina Rinehart. (ABC North Qld: Chloe Chomicki) But in a statement, a One Nation spokesperson would not confirm branch composition or where candidates might be drawn from. "We don't disclose membership numbers," the spokesperson said. "One Nation is in the process of establishing branches in every federal electorate across Australia. "Branches have been formed — or are in the process of forming — in the ACT electorates of Bean, Canberra and Fenner. "One Nation aims to run candidates in every seat across the nation at the next federal election, including in the ACT. "Our focus right now is on state elections in Victoria and NSW, both of which will be held within nine months. "Media questions about our intentions for the ACT election in October 2028 — more than two years from now — are premature. Political scientist Jill Sheppard from the Australian National University thinks that whatever One Nation does, they'll face an uphill battle to win seats in any election in the ACT. "But it doesn't surprise me at all that there are pockets of support for Pauline Hanson in the territory, just like there are across the country. ANU political scientist Jill Sheppard says One Nation has some support in the ACT but faces a challenge. (ABC News: Callum Flinn) Even so, Dr Sheppard said election results had become harder to predict. "The Coalition has been a bit of a rabble, and so we're seeing voters move from the Coalition to One Nation as a substitute on the right side of politics," she said. "We're also seeing, increasingly, votes coming from Labor as well. "That's probably going to happen less in the ACT, where Labor has such a stronghold. "But across the country — and there'll be pockets in the territory too — we're seeing left-wing voters just move to a party that are doing something a

Does Pauline Hanson's claim of growing support in the ACT pass the pub test?

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