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Amid Coalition chaos and free speech battles, Family First stakes its ground—championing life, faith, and family while positioning for key state upper house wins in a turbulent political landscape.

With the Coalition in chaos and One Nation rising, many supporters are asking: where does this leave Family First?

Before answering that, some context.

January is usually a quiet month in Australian politics.

That ended on 14 December, when the Bondi massacre of Jews by Islamic extremists shattered any sense of New Year normality.

The Prime Minister’s botched response was quickly followed by an equally botched response from the Coalition. The result: chaos on the conservative side of politics.

Free Speech Betrayed While Extremism Goes Unchecked

The Liberals handed Anthony Albanese a political lifeline by voting for his so-called “hate speech” laws—laws that do little to address Islamic extremism and instead shield Islam from scrutiny.

You couldn’t make this up. But the radical left never wastes a crisis to advance its anti-free speech agenda, and the Liberals fell for it.

Spooked by the rise and rise of One Nation, the Nationals broke with the Liberals and voted against further restrictions on free speech—blowing up the Coalition in the process. On the speech issue, the Nationals were right.

Last weekend, it briefly appeared the Liberals might also reject another clampdown on free speech. Instead, they cut a late-night deal with Labor, driving yet another stake into the heart of freedom of speech in Australia.

Our “hate speech” laws were already bad. I know this personally: I am currently being sued under them by two LGBTIQA+ drag queens.

Australia did not need more of these laws. What we needed—and still need—is the enforcement of existing laws against incitement to violence and the support of terrorism. That failed to happen after Muslim crowds outside the Sydney Opera House chanted “gas the Jews” on 9 October 2023.

So, where does this leave Family First?

How Family First Differs from One Nation

Family First exists because the Liberals continue to follow Labor in a steady drift to the radical left—embracing abortion, euthanasia, and cost-of-living-destroying net zero policies at state level.

While there is common ground with One Nation, there is also a clear difference. Family First is unapologetically pro-life, from conception to natural death.

Pauline Hanson, despite her courage on many issues, supports euthanasia and early-term abortion. On matters of life, those differences matter.

With as little as 3–5 per cent of the vote needed—depending on preference flows—there is absolutely a place for Family First in state upper houses. That is where we are focused.

A Clear Path Forward for Faith, Family and Life

Thanks to the generous support of people like you, Deepa Mathew is well-positioned to win a seat in the South Australian Legislative Council this March. Her campaign is underway in earnest.

In Victoria, Jane Foreman and her team are recruiting candidates ahead of the November election.

And in New South Wales, the next 13 months are make-or-break for my campaign to win a Family First seat in Parliament.

Despite the turmoil on the centre-right, there has never been a greater need for a party that will fight for family, faith, freedom and life.

There has never been a greater need for a party focused on taking the pressure off families.

We are not distracted by the chaos.

Our mission has not changed.

The team and I are deeply grateful for your continued support as we gear up for a big 2026.

PS: National Conference featuring Katy Faust (via live video from Seattle), Michelle Pearse, Bob McCoskrie, Monica Doumit, Hon Tom Kenyon, Hon Jack Snelling, Deepa Mathew, Lyle Shelton and more will be held at the Epping Club, Sydney from Friday 21 August to Saturday 22 August 2026. Save the dates!

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Republished with thanks to Family First.