Candidates contesting the Victorian state election for One Nation include a former Liberal who has won support from alleged underworld figures, a naturopath who has endorsed Donald Trump’s unfounded claim that paracetamol is linked to autism and a former shire councillor who lost his licence for drink-driving. Pauline Hanson announced who would be her party’s upper house candidates and Victorian leader, Warren Pickering, at a press conference last month. Since then One Nation has used social media to unveil a steady stream of candidates, with 51 of the 88 lower house spots now filled.
Among them is Michael Piastrino, who launched his campaign on Sunday for the outer-suburban seat of Berwick, held by the Liberal Brad Battin on a 4.7% margin. The launch was attended by Malaki Salesui, who was convicted in 2021 for his role in an organised car-theft ring. Mick Mantzaris commented on photographs of the event on Instagram, writing: “great day great people” and “time for a change”.
Mantzaris pleaded guilty in 2012 to possessing testosterone, disclosing restricted information and misleading the office of police integrity. The following year he was targeted in a drive-by shooting. Police described him at the time as “an associate of some outlaw motorcycle gang members”.
Anthony Younan, the nephew of the slain underworld figure Nabil Maghnie, also commented on Piastrino’s Instagram posts, saying he would vote for One Nation because of him: “I can’t believe I am going to vote for a red headed woman who hate Arabs. My mother is going to disown me Michael. But I am doing this for you bro!” Piastrino, a hairdresser, ran for the Liberals at the 2022 election.
He was forced to apologise during that campaign after declaring that Daniel Andrews would be “brought to justice for the murder of 800 people” under a Liberal government. He told the Cranbourne Star News last month that he had met Mantzaris and Salesui through church. In an interview in June, Kelvin Morton, One Nation’s general manager, said the party had also employed technology that did a “very comprehensive deep dive” into potential candidates’ social media accounts and provided a “thorough assessment” of their characters.
One Nation also shown a willingness to accept candidates with controversial histories, including Pickering, who this month acknowledged past drug use and drink-driving. Ben Lucas, the party’s candidate for the Liberal-held seat of Narracan, resigned from Baw Baw shire council in 2021 after being convicted of drink-driving and dangerous driving. Court records seen by Guardian Australia show he was fined $2,000 and had his licence suspended for two years.
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