SA Liberals hope preferencing One Nation will give them a fighting chance – but is the brand damage worth it?

John Howard’s principled stand against Pauline Hanson appears a distant memory for present-day Liberals, who have prioritised political expediency ahead of the South Australian election Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast A quarter of a century after John Howard demanded One Nation be placed last on Liberal how-to-vote cards, the rightwing party’s candidates find themselves in a far friendlier position at this weekend’s South Australian state election. The SA Liberals are directing supporters to put One Nation ahead of Labor in a strategy designed to give conservatives – of whatever hue – the best chance of defeating members of Peter Malinauskas’ heavily favoured party. “This is not a vote of confidence in One Nation – in fact, far from it,” the Liberal opposition leader, Ashton Hurn, told RN Breakfast on Tuesday. “But you’ve got to put people somewhere on the ballot. That’s the decision that we’ve made, and this is a vote of no confidence in the government.” The Liberals made the decision even after One Nation refused a quid pro quo, electing instead to run open tickets on th