Key facts
- Greens leader Ellen Sandell said Labor's open ticket in Prahran could help elect a Liberal-One Nation government.
- Prahran is held by the Liberals' Rachel Westaway on a 1.3% margin, per the report.
- Labor is also running an open ticket in Caulfield, held by the Liberals' David Southwick on a 2.1% margin.
- The Liberals and Nationals confirmed they would exchange preferences with One Nation.
- One Nation moved to disendorse Preston candidate Franco Guardiani over tweets, including one calling Hitler the "GOAT."
The Victorian Greens leader, Ellen Sandell, said on Tuesday that Labor's decision to run an open ticket in the inner Melbourne seat of Prahran could help elect a Liberal-One Nation government, Guardian Australia reported. Under an open ticket, Labor's how-to-vote material places its own candidate first but does not direct voters on remaining preferences.
Prahran is held by the Liberals' Rachel Westaway on a 1.3% margin. Labor's candidate there is Meghan Hopper, and the Greens candidate is Angelica Di Camillo. The Greens lost the seat in a 2025 byelection, when the party recorded a 13.4% swing, according to the report.
Sandell said Labor was "showing its true colours" and called the decision "frankly unforgivable." She said the result could come down to a single seat and that One Nation could hold the balance of power. A Labor spokesperson said: "Our message is simple: put a 1 next to Labor candidates everywhere. We're fighting for majority government."
Labor is also running an open ticket in the neighbouring seat of Caulfield, held by the Liberals' David Southwick on a 2.1% margin. The report, citing unnamed people, said the local campaigns in Prahran and Caulfield requested the arrangement, which it said is consistent with Labor's position at the 2025 federal election in Macnamara.
On Tuesday, the Liberals and Nationals confirmed they would exchange preferences with One Nation. The opposition leader, Jess Wilson, said Coalition how-to-vote cards would put Labor, the Greens and the Victorian Socialists at the bottom of the ticket. Hours later, One Nation moved to disendorse its Preston candidate, Franco Guardiani, over tweets, including one describing Hitler as the "GOAT." Victorian Liberal Senator Jane Hume told ABC's Afternoon Briefing the tweets were "vile" and said Guardiani would be last on the party's how-to-vote material in the electorate.