Victoria election 2026: Victorian Liberals do preference deal with One Nation as Labor snub Greens in key inner-city seat

Victorian Labor will run an open ticket in the inner-city seat of Prahran at this month’s election, a move that could deprive the Greens of preferences it needs to win the seat back from the Liberal party.

It comes as the Victorian Coalition and One Nation plan to preference each other above Labor.

Labor sources on Tuesday confirmed to Guardian Australia it would run an open ticket in both Prahran and Caulfield, which would encourage voters to place their respective candidates, Meghan Hopper and Mikaela Stafrace, first on ballots but not dictate preferences.

It is understood the two local campaigns made the request for an open ticket, which is consistent with the position Labor took at the 2025 federal election in the overlapping seat of Macnamara, held by Josh Burns.

The seat of Caulfield, held by the Liberal’s deputy leader, David Southwick, on a 2.1% margin, is home to Victoria’s largest Jewish community, which also extends into St Kilda East in the Prahran electorate.

At the 2025 byelection, the Greens lost Prahran for the first time since 2014, to the Liberals’ Rachel Westaway. The Jewish community group J-United ran a “Put the Greens last” campaign with support from Advance Australia during the campaign over the party’s conduct and positions on the war in Gaza.

But the Greens denied its position in on the Middle East played a role in the loss, instead citing poor turnout and a lack of absentee votes, which usually help the party secure support from its younger, more transient base. Labor also did not field a candidate at the byelection.

The Greens are confident they can win the seat – currently held by Westaway on a tiny 1.3% margin – back at a general election and are running the same candidate, Angelica Di Camillo. The party is also buoyed by recent polls where its primary vote has increased, though Labor’s decision not to direct its voters to preference the Greens could impact the result.

Meanwhile, Liberal sources have confirmed the Coalition will preference One Nation above Labor, however they say it is “high unlikely” Pauline Hanson’s party will be in the number two position on the ballot. Instead, they point to the Nepean byelection in May, where the Liberals put One Nation candidate Darren Hercus third on the ballot behind the Libertarian candidate.

The party is also understood not to be running a campaign to put Labor last, instead preferencing the Victorian Socialists and the Greens below them, in a blow to Greens campaigns in seats such as Richmond, Pascoe Vale and Preston.

Wilson told reporters on Tuesday the Coalition “will be putting Labor, the Greens, the Socialists at the bottom of the ticket, and all other parties above that.”

Labor minister Anthony Carbines said Labor was taking a “principled stand” on preferences and would put One Nation last.

“Jess Wilson has made it clear, because they want to form government with One Nation, they are also going to preference with One Nation. It’s all nudge-nudge wink-wink, we can all see it,” he said.

One Nation’s James Ashby has previously told Guardian Australia the party would put Labor last.

“We want them gone. That’s why we put them last,” he said last week.