Victorian Liberal Party Evaluates Preference Strategy Regarding One Nation for November State Election

Apr 26, 2026, 14:26

Introduction

The Victorian Liberal Party is considering a strategic preference alignment that would place One Nation ahead of the Labor Party in the upcoming state election on November 28.

Main Body

Internal reports indicate that the Liberal Party's five-person state strategy committee intends to adopt a default position of preferencing One Nation over Labor, provided no exceptional candidate circumstances arise. While a party spokesperson stated that no formal decision has been reached and that the committee has not discussed this specific strategy, current how-to-vote cards for the Nepean byelection demonstrate a preference for One Nation over independent candidate Tracee Hutchison. This alignment is described by one party member as a gesture of good faith between the two entities. This strategic shift is occurring amidst a rise in One Nation's popularity. Data from Resolve Political Monitor indicates that One Nation secured 21 percent of the primary vote in recent surveys, compared to 27 percent for Labor and 29 percent for the Coalition. This trend follows an election in South Australia where One Nation's performance resulted in a reduction of Liberal representation from 16 seats to five. Analysis from Resolve founder Jim Reed suggests this reflects a broader voter dissatisfaction with the two-party system and a tactical effort to remove the Labor government. Critics of this strategy, including former Premier Steve Bracks, argue that such an alignment provides legitimacy to One Nation and may lead to the marginalization of center-right parties, drawing a parallel to the decline of the Republic Party in France. Furthermore, pollster Kos Samaras suggests the party faces a strategic contradiction: while preferencing One Nation may consolidate the right-wing vote, it may simultaneously alienate voters in urban and middle-suburban Melbourne, potentially endangering seats such as Hawthorn, Kew, and Malvern. Local tensions have also emerged in the Nepean electorate, where some Liberal members have expressed dissatisfaction with the selection of candidate Anthony Marsh. This internal friction has led some long-term party members to support independent candidate Tracee Hutchison, citing concerns over the pre-selection process and the decision to preference One Nation.

Conclusion

The Victorian Liberal Party remains in a state of strategic deliberation, balancing the objective of consolidating anti-Labor votes against the risk of alienating urban constituencies and legitimizing a right-wing minor party.

Vocabulary Learning

alienate (v.)

estrange / to cause someone to feel isolated or to lose their support and affection使疏遠；使離心

Example:The politician's aggressive rhetoric threatened to alienate moderate voters who were crucial for his re-election.

consolidate (v.)

reinforce / to combine several elements into a single, more effective or coherent whole鞏固；整合

Example:The company plans to consolidate its various departments into one central headquarters to improve efficiency.

deliberation (n.)

contemplation / the process of long and careful consideration or discussion審議；深思熟慮

Example:The committee's final report was the result of months of intense deliberation and expert consultation.

legitimacy (n.)

validity / the quality of being justifiable, acceptable, or legally recognized正當性；合法性

Example:The government's decision to bypass the parliament raised serious questions about the legitimacy of the new law.

marginalization (n.)

peripheralization / the process of treating a group or concept as insignificant or powerless邊緣化

Example:The rapid urban development led to the marginalization of traditional farming communities in the region.

Sentence Learning

Conditional Clause with 'Provided': The use of 'provided' introduces a formal condition, functioning similarly to 'if' but with more precision in legal or political discourse.「Provided」引導的條件從句: 使用「provided」一詞引入正式條件，其功能與「if」相似，但在法律或政治論述中更具精確性。

While a party spokesperson stated that no formal decision has been reached and that the committee has not discussed this specific strategy, current how-to-vote cards for the Nepean byelection demonstrate a preference for One Nation over independent candidate Tracee Hutchison.

Concessive Clause with Parallel Object Clauses: The sentence uses 'While' to contrast two facts, with the first part containing parallel 'that' clauses to organize complex information as objects of the verb 'stated'.讓步從句與並列賓語從句: 句子使用「While」對比兩個事實，前半部分包含並列的「that」從句作為動詞「stated」的賓語，用以組織複雜的資訊。

Analysis from Resolve founder Jim Reed suggests this reflects a broader voter dissatisfaction with the two-party system and a tactical effort to remove the Labor government.

Nominalization and Lexical Density: The nouns 'dissatisfaction' and 'effort' condense complex actions into abstract concepts, increasing the information density typical of C2 writing.名詞化與詞彙密度: 「dissatisfaction」和「effort」等名詞將複雜的動作凝練為抽象概念，增加了 C2 級別寫作中常見的資訊密度。

Critics of this strategy, including former Premier Steve Bracks, argue that such an alignment provides legitimacy to One Nation and may lead to the marginalization of center-right parties, drawing a parallel to the decline of the Republic Party in France.

Present Participle Phrase for Elaborative Detail: The phrase 'drawing a parallel...' functions as a non-finite clause that elaborates on the context or consequence of the main assertion.現在分詞短語用於細節補充: 短語「drawing a parallel...」作為非限定從句，詳述了主要論點的背景或後果。

Parallel Gerunds within a Participial Phrase: The use of 'consolidating', 'alienating', and 'legitimizing' creates a balanced structure to weigh competing strategic risks.分詞短語中的並列動名詞: 使用「consolidating」、「alienating」和「legitimizing」構成了平衡的結構，用以權衡相互競爭的策略風險。