Is that a whiff of arrogance we detect from the Liberal leader? Jeff Kennett seems to think so

OpinionState political editorOctober 29, 2026 — 5:00amOctober 29, 2026 — 5:00amIt seems odd, all things considered, to have to remind the Victorian Liberal Party about the dangers of hubris.When you haven’t governed this state for 12 years and for only four years this century, vainglory should be the least of your sins. If a generation spent in the political freezer hasn’t taught the Libs a hard lesson about humility, they are glacially slow learners.Jess Wilson, pictured this week on the campaign trail, is refusing to take part in a three-way leaders’ debate.Bridget McArthurIt should be difficult to get uppity, as a Victorian Liberal, when you know that of 128 candidates running for your party in lower and upper house seats at this election, only two have ministerial experience.David Davis and Matthew Guy will no doubt be generous with their mentorship if and when the time comes for them to show frontbench colleagues the ropes. Until then, let’s take the party pride down a notch.On November 5, one week from today, the Nine Network will host a leaders’ debate. So far, Premier Ben Carroll has confirmed his attendance, as has One Nation leader Warren Pickering.Liberal leader Jess Wilson, the candidate who on current polling is likely to become Victoria’s next premier, is so far refusing to take part. Party representatives say she wants to be involved but not if it means sharing a stage with One Nation’s state leader.When Wilson was on Wednesday questioned about this, she said she was happy to debate Carroll “any day” but made no mention of Pickering.This standoff has been going on for a couple of weeks, with neither Nine nor the Liberal Party willing to budge. It has now descended into sandpit sledging, with Carroll and Wilson each accusing the other of running scared.Before you read any further, I should declare that Nine Media, the company which owns the Nine Network, also owns The Age. As the state political editor of The Age, I’ll be on a panel of journalists there on the night asking questions of the people who seek to lead the next government of this state.I’m disappointed with Nine for not bringing back the worm. I’m more disappointed that the Liberal Party thinks it is their prerogative to decide who can and can’t share a TV studio with their candidate.There are 4.7 million people currently registered on the Victorian electoral roll. Of those, according to every opinion poll published over the past six months, between one in five and one in four are planning to vote for One Nation.That is about 1 million Victorians. They are entitled to see and hear from One Nation’s Victorian leader. People who might not engage with state politics beyond a free-to-air television debate are also entitled to see and hear from Jess Wilson who, at the age of just 36, is seeking to become Victoria’s youngest premier in 157 years.Wilson’s team have put forward various arguments about why the debate should be confined to a head-to-head between the leaders of the two major parties. The most reasonable is that either Carroll or Wilson will lead the next government. The most spurious is that, by inviting Pickering to take part, Nine is “platforming” Pauline Hanson’s grievance machine.Nine isn’t platforming One Nation. Voters are. As Wilson’s mentor and former boss Josh Frydenberg writes in his recently published memoir, One Nation’s popular appeal is reflective of a “fundamental realignment” that is reshaping politics here and elsewhere.“As with the support for Trump in the United States and Nigel Farage in the United Kingdom, people are voting for these anti-establishment personalities and parties based on what affects them, not what offends them,” Frydenberg says.“We must engage these lost voters and win back their trust because they will not simply drift back to where they were.”This is the opportunity Wilson is shirking when she refuses a three-way debate with Carroll and Pickering.Is there a whiff of arrogance creeping into her campaign? A former Liberal leader well qualified to know, Jeff Kennett, appears to think so. Off the back of another published opinion poll showing growing support for the Coalition, he wrote in his regular Herald Sun column: “Going into the 1999 election, opinion polls indicated that my government was going to be comfortably returned. We were not.“My advice to Jess and her team: do not believe everything you read.”There is no reason for Wilson to dodge the Nine debate. The ALP has for months been running a scare campaign about the Liberal Party needing support from One Nation to govern. That stale attack line is at odds with the growing possibility that the Coalition could win enough seats to form a parliamentary majority.Victorian premier Jeff Kennett this week offered some free advice to Jess Wilson.Simon SchluterOne Nation nonetheless remains central to this Victorian political contest.They may not end up with a swag of lower house seats but more likely than not, they will hold the balance of power in the upper house. Their primary vote and how their preferences flow will help determine who governs and in what circumstances.They are the disruptive force making this state election so unpredictable and unlike previous electoral contests in Victoria.It is due, in no small party, to the rise of One Nation that previously impregnable Labor seats in Melbourne’s west and north are now in play and regional seats that rebelled against the Kennett government are expected to swing back.It is because of One Nation that this election is being so closely watched in Canberra and NSW, where a comparatively popular Labor government will go to the polls in March.It is a common gripe, from both Labor and Coalition folk, that One Nation is still getting by on a vibe. They want more scrutiny of One Nation policies. They want Hanson’s lot to be treated the same as other political parties.Well, here’s your chance.Chip Le Grand is state political editor.The Opinion newsletter is a weekly wrap of views that will challenge, champion and inform your own. Sign up here.From our partners