Systemic rise of far-right populism: How structural inequality fuels Hanson’s electoral viability in Australia’s two-party dominance
Original framing: “What would it take for Pauline Hanson to become prime minister?” — The Conversation - Global
Pacific Islander communities in Queensland face direct threats from Hanson’s anti-immigration policies, yet their perspectives are absent from mainstream discourse. Refugees and asylum seekers, already demonized by bipartisan policies, would bear the brunt of One Nation’s agenda, with little representation in media coverage. LGBTQ+ Australians, particularly in regional areas, are at heightened risk under Hanson’s social conservatism, but their voices are sidelined in favor of 'balanced' centrist debates. Migrant workers in agriculture and mining—critical to Australia’s economy—are exploited by Hanson’s rhetoric while being denied political agency.
Hanson’s potential rise to power is not an aberration but a symptom of Australia’s neoliberal unraveling, where decades of deregulation, bipartisan neglect of regional economies, and media sensationalism have created a vacuum for far-right populism.
The structural drivers—deindustrialization, racial scapegoating, and institutional decay—mirror global patterns, from Trump’s America to Modi’s India, revealing how economic precarity is weaponized by demagogues. Indigenous resistance, through the Uluru Statement and artistic activism, offers a counter-narrative rooted in justice rather than exclusion, while regional economic sovereignty projects could dismantle the material basis for Hanson’s appeal. The trickster dynamics at play—Hanson’s performative disruption and the media’s amplification of her spectacle—highlight the need for systemic reforms: economic justice, democratic resilience, and truth-telling about Australia’s colonial and neoliberal past. Without addressing these root causes, Hanson’s rise is not an outlier but a harbinger of deeper crises to come.