Rapist’s rehire ‘would have affected’ One Nation polls as primary dips to 24 per cent: Joyce

Barnaby Joyce has admitted scandal over One Nation’s employment of a convicted rapist “would have affected the polls”.

In a poll of 1235 voters conducted over four days last week, the latest Newspoll captured a two-point drop for One Nation.

The polling, conducted for The Australian, found the party’s primary vote dipped to 24 per cent, while both Labor and the Coalition held steady at 31 per cent and 21 per cent respectively.

The Greens and “others” as primary vote options each saw a one point uptick to 13 and 11.

The polling comes after One Nation leader Pauline Hanson was forced to sack former campaign director Sean Black amid outrage over his 2018 rape conviction.

Black appealed the conviction, but lost. Nonetheless, he was rehired by One Nation in 2020.

Mr Joyce has defended his party’s actions since the crisis began, stating last week criminals needed a chance at “redemption”.

Pressed on whether the employment of Black or the scandal around it had dampened polling, Mr Joyce admitted to Sky News: “It would have affected the polls.”

Mr Joyce attempted to divert the conversation to another topic, the Middle East, in what was at times a tense interview.

He earlier downplayed One Nation’s latest polling.

“There was, you know, a little, little bit of bad press, especially around one of our former staffers, and I understand that,” he said.

“The polling is still higher than the Coalition, by the way. But, yeah, it’s a lot of work.

“You’ve got to remember, we’ve just we’ve got five members of parliament … That’s a lot of work on a small number of people, and I think we’re still going incredibly well, considering we’re covering off every portfolio.”

The slight fall for One Nation is still miles ahead of the party’s 6.4 per cent showing at the May 2025 election, but continues a downward trend from a high-watermark of 27 per cent — recorded twice in early and late February — before a one point dip in March.

The change was echoed in a Resolve Political Monitor Poll, conducted for the Sydney Morning Herald and The Age, of 1807 people this month, which captured a two-point fall in One Nation’s support from 24 to 22 per cent.

According to the Newspoll results, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese lead over the Opposition’s Angus Taylor rose slightly, with 46 per cent of people saying they believed he would be a better prime minister to Taylor’s 37.

Ahead of the May budget, the poll asked respondents whether they endorsed 10 options to raise tax revenue.

None of the choices attracted majority support across the electorate, however only 18 per cent of voters rejected them all outright.

Among those that were seen most favourably were an increase to the petroleum resource rent tax at 42 per cent support, reductions to tax concessions for property investors at 35 per cent and reduced tax concessions for family trusts at 29 per cent.