One Nation leader Pauline Hanson declares party can upset Labor in Secret Harbour by-election

Pauline Hanson has declared One Nation can win the upcoming Secret Harbour by-election as her candidate was pressed over old social media posts that show him speeding and talking about drug use. The Queensland Senator told the crowd at The West Australian’s Leadership Matters breakfast she was confident her party could cause an upset in the previously safe Labor electorate, which would mark its first ever Lower House seat. “I think (Labor’s) in trouble,” Senator Hanson said on Tuesday. One Nation candidate Luke Herdegen fielded questions for the first time since he was named the party’s representative for the by-election, which was sparked after the resignation of Labor veteran Paul Papalia. It emerged on Monday he had posted on social media 10 years ago about “doing large amounts of cocaine” and uploaded a video to his Instagram of his BMW reaching speeds of 72km/h in Newcastle - where the limit is 60km/h. Mr Herdegen said the post about drug use was meant to inspire others to live happier and healthier lives, but denied posting about speeding. “Look, when I’m in the streets of Secret Harbour, they’re not asking me about a blog post from 10 years ago,” he said. Pressed on why his social media accounts were deactivated, Mr Herdegan bristled at the question. “I deactivated my social media to protect my family from people like you,” he told reporters. Senator Hanson appeared to be caught unawares at a joint press conference but vowed to look into it. “First time that I’ve heard about it, and so it hasn’t been brought to my attention. But I will be asking questions about it,” she told reporters on Tuesday. Senator Hanson defended the video of him appearing to speed, after he confirmed he has been fined before - but wasn’t pulled over that time. “Okay, so no problem,” she said. Inglewood-based Georgia Tree has been named as the Secret Harbour candidate for Labor, which is bracing for a protest vote in the by-election, despite winning with 46 per cent of first preferences last year. One Nation received just 8.4 per cent of the vote in 2025, but has since surged in opinion polls. Senator Hanson has vowed to put the Greens and Labor last on One Nation’s how-to-vote cards, but said a deal hadn’t been struck with Liberal Leader Basil Zempilas, who has suggested any non-Labor return would be a strong result. “The Liberals will be getting preferences before the Labor and the Greens,” Senator Hanson said. “I’d like to work with the coalition or the libs over here. “If we actually win this, it’ll be the first lower house seat that we’ve won in Western Australia . . . so it will be a test case.” Mr Herdegen will have 15 opponents and drew 14th place on the ballot paper, as a record field of candidates was locked in on Tuesday. It is understood to be the largest field of candidates for a State by-election since electronic records began around 30 years ago. The randomised draw to determine the order of names on the ballot has resulted in mixed results for the major candidates. The Liberal’s Ryan Robertson will take top spot, the Greens’ Rhi Davies will show up third and Labor’s Georgia Tree sixth. The race has also attracted some frequent party-hoppers, including former Liberal and Family First MP Anthony Fels for WA First and former One Nation candidate Teresa van Lieshout — running this time as an independent, even as she says she is suing the WA Government. She also briefly ran for the Palmer United Party in 2013, before being disendorsed.