Jennifer Game, once a “true believer” and policy adviser to Pauline Hanson for eight years, now states One Nation “use people” and lacks democratic checks and balances. Her disillusionment reveals a party structure operating more like a “small business” than a genuine political movement, a stark betrayal of its grassroots supporters. Game, who served as One Nation’s party leader in South Australia, observed Senator Hanson becoming a “weak character,” dominated by then-chief of staff James Ashby. Ashby, she claims, “was running everything,” making Hanson “highly dependent on him.” This internal elite capture sidelined the party leader, undermining the very voice meant to represent the dispossessed. Game’s $2,000 nomination deposit and over $14,000 in claimable expenses from last year’s federal election were not repaid after she quit the party. Her deposit was returned only after a debt recovery process, and a magistrate ordered One Nation to pay her expenses in June, this year. Game felt betrayed: “For them not to pay me the money I was entitled to… that crossed a line for me.”
Elite Interests Exposed
Former Liberal National MP Aidan McLindon described James Ashby as someone for whom politics is “just that, a game.” McLindon stressed the gravity of the situation, stating: “This is serious. This is a country to save. These are people’s livelihoods at stake.” A secret recording from nine years ago, obtained by the ABC in 2017, revealed Ashby discussing opportunities to “make some money” from state elections. At the time, Ashby dismissed it as a “brainstorming session.” McLindon expressed concern that Ashby was not treating prospective candidates with the “decency, communication, and respect” they deserved. He believes Hanson must scrutinize those around her to prevent the party’s “demise.” One Nation’s leadership, including Senator Hanson and Ashby, repeatedly declined interview requests from Four Corners, leaving detailed questions unanswered.
The Cost to the People's Movement
One Nation received 1,200 applications to run for office. Each would-be candidate was charged $150 to apply, with an additional $5,500 fee levied if they were chosen to run. McLindon states candidates learned about this substantial fee only at the end of their interview process. This “insidious money grab” totals an estimated $700,000 from lower house preselection alone, McLindon calculates, during a national cost-of-living crisis. Michael Labrador, a Whittlesea councillor, found the $5,500 fee “quite shocking,” noting its difficulty for blue-collar workers and small business owners. He said the party, despite having “significant financial backing,” called on ordinary people to put money down. Would-be candidates told Four Corners the Victorian preselection process was not democratic. Only about 160 of the 1,200 applicants interviewed via 15-minute Zoom calls with a three-person panel, including Warren Pickering, who became state leader. One anonymous former councillor described Pickering’s interview as a “scripted monologue” taking up most of the time, followed by “inane questions.” Applicants were reportedly prevented from running in upper house seats, which One Nation is “more likely to win.” Labrador, who won pre-selection but declined to run, stated the process was “not meritocratic at all,” shutting out experienced candidates from winnable seats. By early September, this month, with less than 90 days to the November 28 poll, only a third of lower house candidates had been announced. Labrador warned this was “trying to build a grassroots campaign on quicksand,” leaving no time for volunteers or donor bases. Adriana Buccianti, a former Trumpet of Patriots candidate, signed up in February, this year, but never heard back after not making it to the interview stage, leading her to quit the party in disillusionment.
A Betrayal of Trust
After her Senate bid failed last year, Game received a critical text from Ashby and an “angry phone call” from Senator Hanson, who demanded: “What happened to your personal vote?” Game said Hanson “demands enormous loyalty from people, but she doesn’t give it.” This pattern of demanding loyalty while failing to provide it, and the financial exploitation of aspiring candidates, reveals a deep internal rot. While Michael Piastrino, the One Nation candidate for Berwick, expressed satisfaction with the “fantastic” and “professionally” done vetting process, asserting the party’s diverse candidates “will get the job done,” the accounts of numerous disillusioned former members paint a different picture. The party’s internal dysfunction risks squandering the trust of those seeking genuine representation against the forces of managed decline.