Arabic version: شباب أستراليون يواجهون انقسامات عائلية بسبب «ون نيشن»

According to ABC News, young Australians are describing how political differences over One Nation are affecting family relationships, as polling indicates Gen Z is the demographic least likely to support the party and its strongest support comes from Gen X and baby boomers.

Bronte Woolley, who tends to vote for Labor or the Greens, said she is the political outlier in a conservative-minded family where her mother, Kelly, supports One Nation. Woolley said she becomes more agitated by their differences, while Kelly said the pair “agree to disagree” and stop debates before they become too heated. Kelly also said her daughter’s views can be an “eye-opener”.

For 21-year-old Sarah, a second-generation migrant, her father’s One Nation support initially brought “anger and confusion”. She said she later tried to understand his perspective, describing it as an effort to protect himself from people who view immigrants negatively. One Nation wants to cut permanent immigration by 750,000 people as a way to address housing shortages.

Relationships Australia national executive officer Nick Tebbey said the organisation is hearing from more people experiencing political family fallouts. He linked the trend to a proliferation of opinion-based news and “grievance-based politics”, while saying conflict is often driven less by politics itself than by underlying differences in values.

Tebbey said challenged values can prompt defensiveness and emotional responses that create longer-term changes in relationships. But Woolley and Kelly said their political divide has not come between them. Woolley said she would not choose a politically conservative romantic partner, but that family relationships show it is possible to love someone regardless of how they vote.