Farrer by-election: Pauline Hanson makes history as her One Nation wins first EVER House seat in landslide result as teary Senator declares: ‘I don’t put up with s**t!’
One Nation’s David Farley has won the Farrer by-election, with Pauline Hanson making history winning her first ever seat in the House of Representatives under her party name.
With the count still progressing, One Nation is leading the two-candidate-preferred vote with around 58 per cent, ahead of independent Michelle Milthorpe on approximately 42 per cent.
The result is a humiliation for the Coalition. The seat was held by former opposition leader Sussan Ley for 25 years.
Farrer takes in a vast rural stretch of NSW, including Albury, Griffith and Deniliquin, and has been held by the Liberal and National parties since it was created in 1949.
Breaking:One Nation’s David Farley has won Farrer by-election
One Nation’s David Farley has won the Farrer by-election, with Pauline Hanson making history winning her first ever seat in the House of Representatives under her party name.
With the count still progressing, One Nation led the two-candidate-preferred vote with around 58 per cent, ahead of independent Michelle Milthorpe on approximately 42 per cent.
The result is a humiliation for the Coalition. The seat was held by former opposition leader Sussan Ley for 25 years.
Barnaby Joyce, wife Vikki Campion and One Nation senators were seen celebrating by dancing to John Farnham’s You’re the Voice.
Hanson said she had a ‘tear in her eye’ after Sky News called the result.
Speaking to supporters, Hanson said the party was now ‘looking forward to the future’.
‘We are coming after those other seats… you are not going going to be the forgotten people anymore, that is what One Nation is about.’
One Nation supporters chanted ‘Aussie Aussie Aussie, oi oi oi,’ throughout the victory celebration.
Hanson thanked her One Nation team, in particular NSW Senator Sean Bell, who previously worked for her.
Hanson said she was a ‘tough boss’, but said ‘I don’t put up with S-H-I-T!’.
Teal Independent candidate gives teary concession speech
Michelle Milthorpe has fought back tears as she thanked supporters, after lifting her primary vote slightly from 2025 but falling well short of One Nation, finishing with around 40 per cent of the two-candidate preferred vote.
Milthorpe thanked her family and supporters.
‘Thank you so much for your generosity. To every volunteer who stood out the front of the hub and had conversations, to everybody who went in and talked about this movement to people.’
Milthorpe acknowledged the result, referring to deep frustration within the community.
‘One Nation won tonight because people in our community are rightly fed up. The next two years will be a test for One Nation,’ she said.
‘They will successfully reflect the anger we feel out here. But that is the easy part.
‘The hard part is doing something about it. They need to prove to Farrer that they can work collaboratively and with integrity to deliver.’
She said voters were no longer willing to accept the status quo.
‘We are no longer satisfied with being a safe seat that gets very little attention or funding from the government of the day,’ Milthorpe said.
‘We see the political class as totally disconnected from our everyday lives, and we are more than ready than ever to register our disconnect at the ballot box.’
Daily Mail understands that Milthorpe is weighing whether she runs again at the general election, due in 2028.
Sussan Ley takes veiled swipe at Liberals following defeat
Former Liberal Leader and Farrer MP Sussan Ley has released a statement following the historic loss of Farrer, in a veiled swipe at the party, in her first major public statement since she was leader.
‘I congratulate David Farley and One Nation on their victory in Farrer tonight,’ she said.
‘Serving the people of Farrer for 25 years, having been endorsed by locals at nine elections, was the privilege of my professional life. I know David will feel the same sense of honour and responsibility.’
Ley also thanked Liberal candidate Raissa Butkowski and party supporters.
‘I pay tribute to Raissa Butkowski for her efforts over the past two months. Upon leaving Parliament, I bequeathed a quarter of a million dollars in personal fundraising to support the next Liberal candidate and I acknowledge Raissa’s tireless determination since her preselection,’ she continued.
‘I also express my appreciation to the hundreds of Farrer FEC members, as well as our wider network of local supporters and volunteers, for their hard work. I share your immense disappointment about this loss.’
Ley said the loss should not be downplayed.
‘The seat of Farrer was created in 1949. Until tonight, at every one of the 30 elections since, through different and challenging circumstances, it has been held without exception by the Liberal and National parties.
‘It would be an error to reduce both the scale and significance of tonight’s defeat to a Coalition split which occurred months ago, or to misattribute it to the date the vote was held.’
She urged the party to listen carefully to voters.
‘I urge the Liberal leadership to accept this result with humility because the voters never get it wrong,’ she added.
In a pointed swipe at internal critics following her removal as leader, Ley referenced ‘change or die’ comments made by now Opposition Leader Angus Taylor.
On the day the leadership spilled in February, the new leader said the Liberal Party needed to ‘change or die’.
‘Three months later, the result in Farrer demonstrates that statement to be far truer today than it ever was then,’ Ley said.
Liberals give concession speech as vote crashes
Opposition Leader Angus Taylor is addressing supporters in a subdued Liberal Party HQ in Albury.
The Liberal Party vote has crashed to just 10 per cent, down 33 per cent from Sussan Ley’s primary vote recorded just one year ago in 2025.
‘It’s been a tough campaign… but the true Liberals are here and fighting.’
‘The byelection was always going to be a mountain to climb… we need to take away hard lessons from this.’
‘For too long we have been a party of convenience not of conviction.’
He also referenced the break up of the Coalition under Ley’s leadership, crediting that for the party’s failure.
‘Moving forward we need to take our medicine and we have to be honest in our discussion with the Australian people.’
Candidate Raissa Butkowski, shedding a tear, said that the voters had sent a message to the major parties.
Where is the Farrer electorate?
Farrer is a large federal electoral division located in the far southwestern region of New South Wales.
It stretches along the Murray River (pictured) from the Victorian border in the east to the South Australian border in the west, covering roughly 126,563 square kilometres.
It is one of the largest electorates in NSW, often compared to the size of countries like Greece or South Korea.
Farrer is a major agricultural hub, known for producing rice, fruit, wine grapes, and almonds.
Water management is a critical issue for the region.
Major centres include Albury, its largest town, Griffith, Leeton, Deniliquin, and Narrandera.
Corowa, Hay, Balranald, Wentworth, Berrigan, and Jerilderie also make up Farrer.
It had been held by the Coalition since 1949, and has long been hailed as a safe conservative seat.
One Nation celebrates historic win
Pauline Hanson’s One Nation celebrates huge win in Farrer by election.
PVO: This is a breakthrough moment for One Nation
Political editor Peter van Onselen writes:
One Nation has done it, winning a federal lower house seat for the first time since Pauline Hanson was elected to the House of Representatives way back in 1996, before she even officially founded the party.
The win gives One Nation a lower house foothold and proof of a strong primary vote in a seat the Coalition should never have lost. It also gives Hanson something she has wanted for three decades: evidence that her party can do more than influence the Senate or frighten Coalition MPs from the outside.
The next step will be for Hanson to shift to the House of Representatives at the general election due before May 2028, so that she can vie for the opposition leadership, assuming Labor is returned to power.
READ MORE HERE:
One Nation has done it, winning a federal lower house seat for the first time since Pauline Hanson was elected to the House of Representatives way back in 1996.
Farley makes victory speech
Pauline Hanson and David Farley have addressed supporters after declaring victory, marking a historic night for One Nation.
Hanson and her team took to the stage to the sound of John Farnham’s You’re the Voice, briefly celebrating with supporters before turning to the crowd.
Farley then delivered a direct message, outlining his priorities.
‘The price of a safe seat is neglect,’ he said.
He pointed to immigration as a key issue, adding: ‘We’ve got to address immigration, it’s as simple as that.’
Farley argued that population pressures are driving broader challenges. ‘We will not have housing supply, education right or health right until we address the demand side,’ he said.
‘Those numbers have to come down.’
‘We don’t want to be dependent on other countries’ bringing their culture to ours.’
‘We need Australia for Australians.’
Who is David Farley?
One Nation candidate David Farley’s journey to politics follows a long career in agribusiness, both in Australia and internationally.
Raised in Narrandera in the NSW Riverina, he comes from a family with strong rural and service traditions, with military ties spanning two generations.
He began his career as a jackaroo in Deniliquin, working his way up through roles including station manager and irrigation specialist
His major professional breakthrough came in the early 1980s, when he helped develop a large-scale irrigation enterprise in northern New South Wales.
Over two decades, he expanded Colly Cotton from a small operation into a major agribusiness with extensive production, processing and export capacity, supporting jobs across the region.
Farley later went overseas, helping lead the recovery of a large US cotton cooperative, before returning to Australia to head the Australian Agricultural Company
His political journey, however, was under much scrutiny during the election.
Before joining One Nation, Farley had associations with multiple parties, including the Nationals and Labor, and at one point explored running as an independent.
He also previously worked with rival candidate Michelle Milthorpe on water policy development, something the Coalition attempted to highlight during the campaign.
Pauline Hanson arrives to One Nation HQ
Pauline Hanson and David Farley have arrived at One Nation’s election night gathering in Albury, alongside Barnaby Joyce and One Nation senators Sean Bell and Malcolm Roberts.
Hanson stepped onto the stage at the Bended Elbow to greet supporters, choosing not to deliver a formal speech as the atmosphere grew increasingly confident.
Speaking to Sky News soon after, she projected strong optimism—appearing to all but claim victory while highlighting the party’s growing support.
‘People say you don’t have the seats… don’t underestimate us,’ she said.
Hanson said One Nation plans to expand its influence and ‘do more,’ adding that many voters view the party as ‘the last hope’ for change in Australia.
David Farley echoed that sentiment, describing a potential win as ‘the next step’ for One Nation and saying it would be ‘an honour to represent Farrer in the lower house.’
Michelle Milthorpe closes gap – but One Nation remains ahead
Booths in Albury and Griffith have lifted Independent candidate Michelle Milthorpe’s (pictured, left) primary, but One Nation’s lead remains.
With 37 of 94 polling places now counted, Milthorpe has climbed to 25.3 per cent, an increase of more than eight points from 2025.
One Nation’s David Farley still leads on first preferences with 42.6 per cent, but his margin has narrowed.
The Coalition vote remains subdued, with Liberal candidate Raissa Butkowski on 10.3 per cent and Nationals candidate Brad Robertson close behind on 10.3 per cent.
Liberal mood ‘very negative’ as One Nation feels confident
The Liberal Party is understood to have all but given up hope of its chances of victory following the early results.
In contrast, One Nation is increasingly confident, buoyed by its strong early performance.
Party leader Pauline Hanson is expected to arrive at campaign headquarters within the next half hour, as optimism grows within the camp.
Barnaby Joyce is also set to join her, with the pair expected to address the media shortly.
