Is One Nation big enough for Barnaby Joyce and Pauline Hanson? Rumours of internal ructions abound
News Source
•Fri, 31 Jul 2026 15:00:16 GMT
🔍 The Backstory
Barnaby Joyce's defection from the Nationals to One Nation in December 2025 was one of the most dramatic political moves in recent Australian history. The former deputy prime minister and long-serving National Party powerbroker had a tumultuous career marked by leadership spills, scandal, and a high-profile relationship. His switch to Pauline Hanson's right-wing populist party was initially seen as a potential game-changer, giving One Nation a high-profile lower house presence.
Eight months on, the marriage of convenience appears increasingly strained. Joyce, who reportedly saw a better path to party leadership in One Nation than the Nationals, now finds himself trapped between Hanson's autocratic leadership style and the extreme views of colleagues like Queensland Senator Malcolm Roberts. Hanson has made clear her daughter Lee is her preferred successor, not Joyce. The tension reflects deeper questions about whether One Nation can evolve beyond being a personality-driven vehicle for Hanson.
🎯 Why It Matters
The Joyce-Hanson dynamic illuminates the tensions within right-wing populist parties as they grow beyond their founder-leader model. One Nation is surging in the polls, but its internal tensions — between experienced politicians like Joyce and the party's more extreme fringe elements — raise questions about its capacity to translate polling success into stable governance.
For Joyce personally, the story represents a remarkable political journey from deputy PM to potential outsider in his new party. His discomfort with Roberts' conspiracy theories and Hanson's embrace of far-right UK activist Tommy Robinson suggests he may have miscalculated his ability to moderate One Nation from within.
Barnaby Joyce's defection from the Nationals to One Nation in December 2025 was one of the most dramatic political moves in recent Australian history. The former deputy prime minister and long-serving National Party powerbroker had a tumultuous career marked by leadership spills, scandal, and a high-profile relationship. His switch to Pauline Hanson's right-wing populist party was initially seen as a potential game-changer, giving One Nation a high-profile lower house presence.
Eight months on, the marriage of convenience appears increasingly strained. Joyce, who reportedly saw a better path to party leadership in One Nation than the Nationals, now finds himself trapped between Hanson's autocratic leadership style and the extreme views of colleagues like Queensland Senator Malcolm Roberts. Hanson has made clear her daughter Lee is her preferred successor, not Joyce. The tension reflects deeper questions about whether One Nation can evolve beyond being a personality-driven vehicle for Hanson.
The Joyce-Hanson dynamic illuminates the tensions within right-wing populist parties as they grow beyond their founder-leader model. One Nation is surging in the polls, but its internal tensions — between experienced politicians like Joyce and the party's more extreme fringe elements — raise questions about its capacity to translate polling success into stable governance.
For Joyce personally, the story represents a remarkable political journey from deputy PM to potential outsider in his new party. His discomfort with Roberts' conspiracy theories and Hanson's embrace of far-right UK activist Tommy Robinson suggests he may have miscalculated his ability to moderate One Nation from within.