A former senior One Nation staffer has broken his silence about what he claims is a culture of secrecy, dysfunction and questionable decision-making inside Pauline Hanson’s political party.
Charles Swindon, who worked as a candidate vetter and campaign manager before being dismissed in June, has accused One Nation officials of ignoring serious concerns about prospective candidates and senior party figures.
Speaking to 60 Minutes, The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age, Swindon described his experience inside the party as an eye-opener.
“It’s a really shady place,” he said.
Swindon joined One Nation in February after six years working for the Liberal National Party, attracted by its tougher stance on immigration.
However, he claims he quickly discovered an organisation that was “weirdly incompetent” and “chaotic”.
One of his responsibilities was conducting background checks on prospective candidates, a role he says uncovered troubling information that senior officials appeared reluctant to address.
According to Swindon, some potential candidates had allegedly failed to disclose criminal convictions or resolve questions about their citizenship status.
“I said I don’t want a news story to come out during pre-poll about a sex criminal being a pre-selected One Nation candidate,” he recalled. “Which is what happened.”
He pointed to the case of Aoi Baxter, who was dumped as a candidate shortly before the South Australian state election after it emerged he was wanted by British police for failing to appear in court over allegations of sexual touching.
Baxter denies the allegations.
One Nation publicly maintained its background checks had failed to uncover the issue, but Swindon claims Baxter had already disclosed the allegations to party officials.
Another concern involved Bianca Colecchia, a former federal candidate who became One Nation’s Victorian secretary.
Swindon questioned her previous involvement in managing a Melbourne strip club owned by her partner, where a 29-year-old dancer died from a drug overdose in 2016.
The club had also employed a promoter previously accused by police of having links to the Comanchero bikie gang.
Colecchia was not implicated in the woman’s death or accused of criminal wrongdoing. The promoter was never convicted, and money-laundering charges against him were dropped.
Nevertheless, Swindon claims his concerns about the associations were brushed aside.
“I think it was just put in a drawer, shredded, because nothing happened,” he said.
Perhaps the most serious allegations concern former One Nation campaign director Sean Black, who was jailed in 2018 for raping and assaulting his former partner.
Black was removed from the party in April following controversy over his re-employment.
However, Swindon claims Black subsequently discussed an arrangement under which a family business would help raise campaign donations for One Nation in Victoria.
Under the alleged arrangement, the company would receive 10 per cent of donations it secured, as well as a share of subsequent contributions from those donors.
Black has denied any wrongdoing or continuing involvement with the party.
Swindon also alleges a senior One Nation official, Kelvin Morton, made jokes minimising Black’s rape conviction.
Morton strongly denies the allegation, insisting rape is a serious crime and not a subject for humour.
Swindon believes his dismissal was linked to his repeated complaints about Black and Colecchia.
He also claims he was warned that One Nation would release damaging information about him if he spoke publicly.
The former staffer is now pursuing legal action over what he alleges was an unlawful dismissal, a claim the party disputes.
The allegations come at a significant moment for One Nation, which has enjoyed a surge in public support ahead of Victoria’s state election later this month.
A recent Australian Financial Review/Redbridge poll placed the party on 28 per cent of the primary vote, ahead of Labor on 26 per cent and the Coalition on 25 per cent.
Hanson has rejected allegations of an ongoing arrangement involving Black or his family business, describing the investigation as “absolutely garbage”.
While Swindon’s allegations remain contested and have not been established in court, his decision to speak publicly has intensified scrutiny of One Nation’s internal operations.
And with the party attracting growing support from Australians dissatisfied with the major political parties, questions about how it selects candidates and manages its affairs are unlikely to disappear anytime soon.
