I caught up with Pauline Hanson backstage at Melbourne’s 'Put Australia First rally' on Sunday, and she didn’t waste a second getting straight to the point. When I asked why she’d copped the harshest censure in parliamentary history despite other senators pulling far worse stunts, she didn’t hesitate: “Because I’m Pauline Hanson ... I’m a threat to the establishment.”

That line sums up the mood here in Victoria. People are fed up with the state of the establishment, they’re frustrated and they’re desperate for someone to actually listen.

Thank you kindly @PaulineHansonOz we the Victorian people are truly grateful! 🙏🇦🇺 https://t.co/zLauUxcmkD

— Morgan C. Jonas 🇦🇺 (@morgancjonas) November 30, 2025

When I asked why it mattered so much for her to be here, she told me, “Because I’m a proud Australian. I think that Victoria is at an absolute basket case. The country has gone to wrack and ruin.” Hanson said locals keep pleading with her: “Come to Victoria. Please do something to help us down here.”

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The rally was centred on mass migration, digital ID and energy policy — but for Hanson, one issue towers above the rest. “Mass migration. Definitely,” she said. She argued it’s at the heart of everything from housing pressure to the health system to cost-of-living pain, adding that “governments have allowed this to happen.”

🔴 SPECIAL LIVESTREAM: Put Australia First Rally — https://t.co/EaIX3z3y0M https://t.co/hOO6F8Smss

— Avi Yemini (@OzraeliAvi) November 30, 2025

Since PM Anthony Albanese took office, she said, “we’ve seen an increase of about one and a half to two million people.” She insisted it’s time to “clean up our own backyard before we invite more people in.”

Despite the political attacks, Hanson insisted the public will ultimately decide her fate. “It’s not the politicians that will judge me. The people will judge me.”

It was great to be amongst other fellow Australians today at the Put Australia First rally. Seeing a sea of Australian flags and people singing the national anthem with pride is always uplifting. 🇦🇺 pic.twitter.com/NaueuVLPm7

— Rukshan Fernando (@therealrukshan) November 30, 2025

And as for who’d look better in a burqa — Albanese or Hanson? Her answer was simple: “Let’s just get rid of it all together.”