South Australian MLC Sarah Game has announced she’s quitting Pauline Hanson’s One Nation and will continue on in the South Australian parliament as an independent.
Game said she was leaving the party because the One Nation brand was leading to missed opportunities.
“These missed opportunities are the result of the way the One Nation brand is perceived. I have tried to evolve the brand, to the place it needs to be, but I have come to the position that it is not possible and is limiting my ability to advocate for the people of South Australia.” the MP said in a statement announcing her decision.
Game said she did not believe the majority of her constituents aligned with the party.
“With nearly 5 years left in my term I need to be practical if I am to deliver for the people of South Australia. This is the main reason I have decided to become an independent member of Parliament, although the party has made decisions recently which I do not support. These decisions have further reduced my confidence that the party will change as it needs to.” she said.
Game became the first One Nation representative in the South Australian parliament when she was elected at the 2022 election.
Game has campaigned against information about people who are transgender being taught in schools and is a campaigner against abortion rights. She’s also called for certain artworks in the Art Gallery of South Australia to be removed so children cannot see them.
Lots of people quit One Nation once elected
One Nation leader Pauline Hanson recently spoke about how she’s had a lot of experience of leading a party which has its elected representative quit during their term. Hanson was commenting on the recent defection of Senator Price to the Nationals, but her party has a long list of people who’ve abandoned it during their term.
Brian Burston was a Senator for New South Wales, elected in 2016 he quit the party to join the United Australia Party in 2018.
Rod Cullerton was a Western Australian senator who was also elected at the 2016 election, he resigned from the party two years into his term. Courts later found he was ineligible to sit in parliament at the time of his election.
Fraser Anning quit the party just three days after he joined the federal parliament. He later joined the Katter’s Australia party, but was later expelled and founded his own party, at the 2019 federal election he failed to be re-elected.
Ben Dawson entered the Western Australian parliament as a Labor member but was immediately expelled from the party over his harassment convictions, he later joined One Nation, but quit the party after they refused to back him for the 2025 state election. He later changed his name to Aussie Trump and returned to being an independent.
Former Western Australian members John Fischer, Frank Hough, Paddy Embry, Charles Smith all resigned during their terms.
All three of One Nation’s New South Wales Legislative Council members have quit the party. Mark Latham and Rod Roberts resigned in 2023, while Tania Mihailuk walked away form the party in December.
In Queensland a dozen members elected under the One Nation banner have quit during their term.
