Fire the Liar
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| Affiliation | One Nation |
|---|---|
| Status | Active |
| Key people | Pauline Hanson |
| Receipts | Over AU $5 million (as of 19 June 2026) |
| Slogan | Fire the Liar |
Fire the Liar is an Australian political fundraising campaign organised by the far-right populist One Nation party,[1] criticising the incumbent Labor Albanese government. The campaign began on 10 June 2026,[2] and has raised AUD $4 million as of 16 June.[3]
Background
[edit]Since 2025, One Nation, under the leadership of far-right politician Pauline Hanson, has experienced rising favourability in opinion polls ahead of the next Australian federal election. In May 2026, the Australian Labor Party (ALP) ran advertisements across multiple social media platforms requesting its supporters donate between $10 to $27, to combat the 'rise of One Nation'.[4]
One Nation's increased favourability in opinion polls has coincided with the ALP primary vote declining.[4] This has been attributed to issues such as the cost of living, the housing crisis, and immigration.[5] Additionally, the Albanese government has faced controversy over the 2026 Australian federal budget, particularly due to changes to capital gains tax and negative gearing, which contradicted statements made by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese during the 2025 election campaign.[6][7]
Albanese stated that the government "changed our position" on the issues in response to accusations of lying.[8][better source needed]
One Nation's campaign came shortly after a similar campaign called "Ditch the Witch" targeted Victorian premier Jacinta Allan of the Labor Party. The campaign was condemned as "sexist" by several figures including former prime minister Julia Gillard, who experienced similar attacks during her tenure in government.[9]
The campaign
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The campaign was officially launched on 10 June. One Nation asked its supporters for $29 donations via social media advertising to fund Fire the Liar, mirroring the ALP's social media campaign; despite Hanson previously criticising such fundraising methods as "disgusting."[10][11] One Nation stated that the Fire the Liar campaign funds will be used on advertising material criticising the Labor government, in the form of billboards, radio and television advertisements.[12][11] The campaign will target seats held by Labor, including safe seats such as Grayndler, Watson, and McMahon.[13]
One Nation released a video narrated by Hanson for the campaign, claiming "mass migration" has caused the cost-of-living crisis, and that the government is infringing on the rights of citizens.[14]
Reactions
[edit]Labor
[edit]"Did she though? Did she? What evidence is there?"
Albanese questioned the legitimacy of Hanson's claims that the campaign had raised millions of dollars,[3] and accused One Nation of having the same policies as the Liberal-National Coalition.[11] Health Minister Mark Butler suggested the amount of money raised for "Fire the Liar" was far less "in comparison to the money that One Nation receives from a billionaire like Gina Reinhart [sic]".[16][better source needed] Environment Minister Murray Watt accused One Nation of focusing on political attacks while ignoring the cost-of-living crisis.[17][better source needed] Agriculture Minister Julie Collins stated the government "took community sentiment seriously" and noted rising anti-establishment sentiment from the public.[11]
Others
[edit]National Party Senator Bridget McKenzie stated the campaign reflected voters' frustration with the Labor Party.[17][better source needed]
Michelle Grattan of The Conversation said that "The budget's broken promises help One Nation exploit public discontent and distrust, using its "Fire the Liar" slogan."[18] The Guardian reported on the campaign's fundraising and related News Corp coverage.[12]
See also
[edit]
References
[edit]- ^ Attributed to multiple sources:
- Goot, Murray (2005). "Pauline Hanson's One Nation: Extreme Right, Centre Party or Extreme Left?". Labour History. 89 (89). Liverpool University Press: 101–119. doi:10.2307/27516078. JSTOR 27516078. Archived from the original on 18 November 2023. Retrieved 7 September 2023.
Respondents in national surveys did not see One Nation as a party of the Right; rather they saw it more than any other party as a party of extreme Right.
- Paxton, Pamela; Mughan, Anthony (2006). "Anti-Immigrant Sentiment, Policy Preferences and Populist Party Voting in Australia". British Journal of Political Science. 36 (2). Cambridge University Press: 341–358. doi:10.1017/S0007123406000184. JSTOR 4092233. S2CID 154796526. Archived from the original on 8 January 2021. Retrieved 10 November 2020.
The result is a path model of voting that allows material and cultural threat to influence policy preferences about how to deal with the 'immigrant problem', and allows both threat and policy preferences to affect voting for the far-right One Nation party in Australia.
- Danny, Ben-Moshe (2001). "One Nation and the Australian far right". Patterns of Prejudice. 35 (3): 24–40. doi:10.1080/003132201128811205. S2CID 145077630.
- Fleming, Andy; Mondon, Aurelien (April 2018). "The Radical Right in Australia". The Oxford Handbook of the Radical Right. Oxford University Press.
- Gibson, Rachel; McAllister, Ian; Swenson, Tami (2002). "The politics of race and immigration in Australia". Ethnic and Racial Studies. 25 (2): 823–844. doi:10.1080/0141987022000000286. S2CID 145621790.
- Sengul, Kurt (22 June 2020). "Pauline Hanson built a political career on white victimhood and brought far-right rhetoric to the mainstream". The Conversation. Archived from the original on 8 November 2020. Retrieved 5 November 2020.
- Charley, Peter (27 March 2019). "Australia's One Nation offered 'change to voting system' for cash". Al Jazeera. Archived from the original on 9 September 2020. Retrieved 15 June 2019.
- Crowe, David (18 March 2019). "Political forces unite to reject far right and deny One Nation preferences". The Sydney Morning Herald. Archived from the original on 20 October 2020. Retrieved 29 October 2019.
- Mendes, Philip (13 August 2020). "The far-right's wade into the welfare waters". Monash Lens. Monash University. Archived from the original on 22 February 2023. Retrieved 5 June 2021.
- Harper, Cathy (8 May 2019). "The battle of the slogans". Election Watch. Archived from the original on 24 June 2019. Retrieved 24 June 2019.
- McSwiney, Jordan (2 January 2023). "Organising Australian far-right parties: Pauline Hanson's One Nation and Fraser Anning's Conservative National Party". Australian Journal of Political Science. 58 (1): 37–52. doi:10.1080/10361146.2022.2121681. ISSN 1036-1146. Archived from the original on 5 March 2023. Retrieved 16 May 2026.
- McSwiney, Jordan (2 January 2023). "Organising Australian far-right parties: Pauline Hanson's One Nation and Fraser Anning's Conservative National Party". Australian Journal of Political Science. 58 (1): 37–52. doi:10.1080/10361146.2022.2121681. ISSN 1036-1146. Archived from the original on 5 March 2023. Retrieved 16 May 2026.
- Richards, Imogen; Jones, Callum (12 April 2023), "Far-Right Identitarianism in Australia", Global Identitarianism (1 ed.), London: Routledge, pp. 199–218, doi:10.4324/9781003197607-17, ISBN 978-1-003-19760-7, retrieved 16 May 2026
- Goot, Murray (2005). "Pauline Hanson's One Nation: Extreme Right, Centre Party or Extreme Left?". Labour History. 89 (89). Liverpool University Press: 101–119. doi:10.2307/27516078. JSTOR 27516078. Archived from the original on 18 November 2023. Retrieved 7 September 2023.
- ^ Massola, James (10 June 2026). "Hanson's fundraising blitz raises half a million in eight hours". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 19 June 2026.
- ^ a b Sarwal, Amit (16 June 2026). "One Nation raises $4 million, dares Albanese to show his fundraising figures". The Australia Today. Archived from the original on 19 June 2026. Retrieved 19 June 2026.
- ^ a b Om, Jason (25 May 2026). "Labor asking supporters for $10 donations to help 'stop' the rise of One Nation". ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Archived from the original on 19 June 2026. Retrieved 19 June 2026.
- ^ Vidler, Adam (9 June 2026). "'Hilarious': PM's plea for donations to fight One Nation mocked". nine.com.au. Archived from the original on 10 June 2026. Retrieved 19 June 2026.
- ^ Keating, Michael (12 June 2026). "Pauline Hanson's 'Fire the Liar' Campaign Surges Past $3 Million: A New Benchmark in Australian Political Fundraising?". insidecanberra.com. Archived from the original on 19 June 2026. Retrieved 19 June 2026.
- ^ Yosufzai, Rashida (11 May 2026). "Albanese vowed no changes to housing tax breaks. Now he's defending reforms". SBS News. Special Broadcasting Service. Archived from the original on 11 May 2026. Retrieved 19 June 2026.
- ^ "'We changed our position': Anthony Albanese grilled over Labor's broken promises in budget". Sky News Australia. 13 May 2026. Retrieved 19 June 2026.
- ^ Kolovos, Benita and Visser, Nick (8 June 2026). "'Sexist': Gillard and Albanese condemn 'ditch the witch' campaign against Victorian premier". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 9 June 2026. Retrieved 19 June 2026.
- ^ Henry, Thomas (10 June 2026). "'Fire the liar': Hanson copies ALP tactics she called 'disgusting' with new anti-Albanese adverts". The Australian. Retrieved 19 June 2026.
- ^ a b c d Bharadwaj, Jitarth Jai (10 June 2026). "Would you pay $27 to stop Pauline Hanson's One Nation or $29 to fire Albanese's Labor?". The Australia Toay. Retrieved 19 June 2026.
- ^ a b Meade, Amanda (12 June 2026). "As One Nation seeks donations to 'fire the liar', News Corp gives it front-page billing". Guardian Australia. Archived from the original on 19 June 2026. Retrieved 19 June 2026.
- ^ Tyson, William (16 June 2026). "Pauline Hanson vows to target Albanese, Burke and Bowen as $4 million 'Fire the Liar' campaign ramps up". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 19 June 2026 – via The Toowoomba Chronicle.
- ^ "Stand up. Fire the liar. | Hanson releases latest campaign video". The Australian. Retrieved 19 June 2026.
- ^ Sharma, Yashee. "One Nation to audit $2 million donations after PM casts doubt". Nine.com.au. Retrieved 20 June 2026 – via MSN.
- ^ Keszler, Sarah (12 June 2026). "Labor and Liberal politicians in fiery clash as One Nation raises millions in snap fundraiser". 7 News. Archived from the original on 19 June 2026. Retrieved 19 June 2026.
- ^ a b Edwards, Aimee (12 June 2026). "Labor rejects voter trust crisis claims as One Nation anti-Albanese ad campaign hits State of Origin". 7 News. Archived from the original on 18 June 2026. Retrieved 19 June 2026.
- ^ Grattan, Michelle (11 June 2026). "Grattan on Friday: Albanese's broken promises have played into Hanson's insurgency". The Conversation. Archived from the original on 18 June 2026. Retrieved 19 June 2026.