Updated June 12, 2026 — 6:24pm,first published 1:45pmOne Nation leader Pauline Hanson and MP Barnaby Joyce have arrived at a fundraising event in Melbourne’s inner suburbs, after the venue that was originally supposed to host the political party pulled out on Friday.Anti-racism protesters who had planned to rally against the far-right party were thrown off by the late change of venue, and a planned protest outside the original Moonee Ponds venue fizzed out as news started to filter out about the new location.One Nation leader Pauline Hanson and Barnaby Joyce were set to speak at the event.Alex EllinghausenVictoria Police confirmed that Giorgio Casa, the Italian restaurant in Moonee Ponds that was to host the cocktail party on Friday night, had during the day cancelled the event. Police said they were not aware of any threats made against the venue.Outside the replacement venue in Melbourne’s inner suburbs, Hanson took aim at Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan, whose leadership has been threatened by recent anonymous rumours of a potential challenge.“Look, the people will have their say at the next election,” Hanson said. “I think that’s very important. She’ll be judged on her performance as premier for the state. But what I’m seeing here ... She’s going to struggle to even keep her seat, hold her seat, and I’ve heard rumours that they will oust her before the election.”Although there was just one lone protester outside the replacement venue when Hanson and Joyce arrived, Joyce noted the strong police presence and decried the necessity of so much security. “I mean, I thought we’ve arrived at Melbourne, not Pyongyang,” he said. “This is political debate. People are allowed to have it. We’re a free nation, and, you know … that lady’s allowed to scream craziness. But don’t threaten people because that’s not Australia.”The event will cap off a fundraising blitz for One Nation.Hanson at a One Nation meeting on Victoria’s Mornington Peninsula in April.Simon SchluterJoyce told a radio station earlier in the day his party members wanted to be able to walk the streets “unmolested” by the left, who he accused of trying to infringe on the parliamentarians’ rights.“This is the home of AFL and seminal to that is our right and our freedom to have our political discussion. And if we haven’t got that, we’re losing what Australia is,” he said. “It’s ridiculous. If Carlton supporters can walk around with Collingwood supporters and both go to a pub and have a talk to Essendon supporters, then why can’t we have a political event in Melbourne?”Similar One Nation fundraisers held in other Australian cities this week were also met with protests, including Perth, where hundreds held signs decrying racism and the party itself.Groups such as No Room for Racism, the Victorian Socialists, and Free Palestine Melbourne had planned to gather near the Melbourne fundraiser 45 minutes before it began “to drive Hanson out”. Online, some far-right figures had spoken of sending their own groups to defend the event.The fundraiser was billed as an “exclusive evening ... and networking event” with senior One Nation leadership, to bring together “business leaders, community figures and supporters seeking a stronger direction for Victoria”.Omar Hassan, a Victorian Socialist candidate and rally organiser, said protesters had “watched with horror as this far-right, racist party has gained support and prominence”, but would now be “taking our chance to mobilise strongly and let the world know that a party bought and paid for by Gina Rinehart, which votes against wage rises, supports devastating wars overseas and bigotry at home, is not welcome in Melbourne”.“If Hanson and Joyce are too cowardly to show up tonight, then we will claim that as a victory against racism and the billionaires,” Hassan said.Moonee Valley City Mayor Rose Iser said she was glad the event did not go ahead in Moonee Ponds. “Moonee Valley has welcomed generations of immigrants from the horrors of wars in Europe, Asia and Africa to give their kids and grandkids a peaceful Australian way of life,” she said.“I welcome the business owners seeing sense and that this particular brand of hate and division is not welcome in Moonee Ponds or Moonee Valley.”Moonee Valley City Mayor Rose Iser.Luis Enrique AscuiMelbourne has a particular history of protesting against One Nation. Tens of thousands of people flooded Treasury Gardens in 1996 when Hanson was first elected to federal parliament, to stand against the Queensland senator’s anti-immigration rhetoric – including her infamous declaration that Australia was being “swamped by Asians”.When Hanson formally launched the One Nation party at Dandenong Town Hall in 1997, protests outside the venue turned violent, as demonstrators hurled rotten fruit and bottles at party supporters and clashed with police.Get alerts on breaking news as it happens. Sign up for our Breaking News Alert.From our partners