Legislative Assembly · District of Werribee
Paul Pateras
Last verified 30 Sept 2026
Seat context — Werribee›
Werribee is a Labor-held seat in Melbourne's outer south-west covering Werribee, Werribee South and Wyndham Vale. Tim Pallas held it and won it in 2022 with 45.4% of first preferences and 60.9% two-party-preferred against the Liberals' Mia Shaw. He resigned in January 2025, and at the 8 February 2025 by-election Labor's John Lister won by 693 votes: the Liberals' Steve Murphy led on first preferences (29.0% to 28.9%), with independent Paul Hopper third on 14.6%, and Lister won 50.8% to 49.2% in the two-candidate count. Lister is recontesting. The Tally Room says the by-election vote was fragmented by Hopper's candidacy. The 2026 field found is seven candidates: Lister, the Liberals' Reece Clark, the West Party's Paul Hopper, the Greens' Tushar Kumar, One Nation's Paul Pateras, Family First's Matthew Emerson, the Victorian Socialists' Sue Munro and the New Democrats' Prashant Tandon. An independent named Matthew De Angelis appears in an earlier audit note but not on The Tally Room's list.
Background
Platform
Where they stand, issue by issue — grounded in 2026 Victorian polling, not assumed. Every position is tagged with how we know it.
Community safety and law and order, cost-of-living relief, affordable and reliable energy, housing opportunities, fiscal responsibility, and infrastructure and services matching population growth.
"Every person in Werribee deserves to feel safe in their home, on their street and in their community."
What Victorians say matters most
5 poll-led issuesCost of living and crime have ranked 1st or 2nd in every Victorian poll since mid‑2025, with debt and housing close behind — see schema §3 for the polling this grouping is based on (DemosAU, Ipsos Issues Monitor, Roy Morgan). The 0-10 'priorityScore' on each candidate's issue entries is NOT a measure of true importance or an independent ranking of what a candidate actually cares about. It reflects how much detail and specificity exists in what that candidate has actually said publicly on that issue -- a named policy mechanism and a verified voting record score higher than a one-line stated priority, regardless of the issue's real-world weight. Render this distinction in the UI wherever the score appears; do not label it just 'Priority' without the qualifier.
Cost of living
Names relief on groceries, fuel, energy and household expenses as a priority.
The One Nation Victoria platform, as summarised by the Australian Election Tracker, would remove insurance duty on premiums and end renewable subsidies.
Crime and community safety
Names community safety and law and order as his first priority.
Housing affordability and supply
Wants improved housing opportunities.
The party platform, as summarised by the Australian Election Tracker, would ban foreign ownership of residential property.
State government debt and fiscal management
Wants government fiscal responsibility.
Infrastructure and public transport delivery
Wants roads, transport, healthcare and schools to match population growth.
Also on the record
6 substance issuesThese don't top “biggest issue” polling, but carry real 2026 policy weight and genuine differences between parties.
Education and training
The party platform, as summarised by the Australian Election Tracker, would establish elected school boards with a parent majority; nothing is attributed to Pateras personally.
Health and healthcare access
Not detailed in sources reviewed.
Urban planning and housing density
Not detailed in sources reviewed.
Climate and energy transition
Wants affordable and reliable energy.
The party platform, as summarised by the Australian Election Tracker, opposes Net Zero by 2050.
Treaty and First Nations affairs
The party platform, as summarised by the Australian Election Tracker, would oppose and repeal Victoria's Statewide Treaty framework; nothing is attributed to Pateras personally.
Regional and rural Victoria
Not detailed in sources reviewed.
Local & party context
2 fieldsNot scored the way the eleven issues above are — these are fixed facts about the seat and the party, not positions with more or less emphasis behind them.
His themes sit within One Nation's statewide platform. SSelf-stated — ON-PP, ET-ON-POLICYOne Nation Victoria, "Paul Pateras for Werribee"View sourceAustralian Election Tracker, "One Nation policy profile — 2026 Victorian election"View source
No point of divergence was found.
Track record & prior candidacies
His profile mentions no prior campaign. SSelf-stated — ON-PPOne Nation Victoria, "Paul Pateras for Werribee"View source
He is not among the candidates in the 2022 general election or the 2025 by-election. VVerified — WIKI-WER-BYEWikipedia, "2025 Werribee state by-election"View source
Campaign, money & endorsements
Campaign logistics
Endorsements & Donations
Per the Victorian Electoral Commission's funding guidance (vec.vic.gov.au, accessed 2026-09-29 via search snippets of its independent-candidate and registered-party funding pages), a candidate is eligible for public election funding if they receive at least 4% of first-preference votes in their contest, or are elected. Funding is reimbursed against an audited statement of campaign expenditure, and advance funding must be repaid in full if the threshold is missed.
Pateras has not previously contested an election, and One Nation did not field a Werribee candidate in 2022 or at the 2025 by-election.