Legislative Assembly · District of Narracan
Geoff Dethlefs
Last verified 24 Sept 2026
Seat context — Narracan›
Narracan is a Liberal-held Gippsland seat around Warragul and Drouin, represented by Wayne Farnham since a January 2023 supplementary election — the original 2022 contest was declared failed after Nationals candidate Shaun Gilchrist died shortly before polling day. Farnham, a local builder, is recontesting. The field also includes Labor's Jannette Langley, a longtime party member and repeat candidate; the Greens' Alyssa Weaver; Victorian Socialists' Moss Page; Family First's Geoff Dethlefs; and One Nation's Ben Lucas, a Baw Baw Shire councillor on leave from council since 16 September 2026 who defected from the Liberal Party in late 2025.
Background
His Family First page calls him "a retired School Teacher and Principal, who recently pastored a small West Gippsland Church." SSelf-stated — FF-DETHLEFS-2026Family First Party Australia, "Geoff Dethlefs, Candidate for Narracan"View source
It says most of the couple's teaching was in the non-government sector and, since 1983, in Christian schools. SSelf-stated — FF-DETHLEFS-2026Family First Party Australia, "Geoff Dethlefs, Candidate for Narracan"View source
The South Gippsland Sentinel Times described him in April 2025 as a former Chairo Christian School teacher and Baptist Church pastor. RReported — SGST-DETH-APR25South Gippsland Sentinel Times, "Stop the rot, it’s family first, says Geoff" (30 Apr 2025)View source
His page says Narracan has been "his home for the last nineteen years." SSelf-stated — FF-DETHLEFS-2026Family First Party Australia, "Geoff Dethlefs, Candidate for Narracan"View source
The Sentinel Times called him "a resident of Drouin for 20 years" in April 2025. RReported — SGST-DETH-APR25South Gippsland Sentinel Times, "Stop the rot, it’s family first, says Geoff" (30 Apr 2025)View source
Platform
Where they stand, issue by issue — grounded in 2026 Victorian polling, not assumed. Every position is tagged with how we know it.
His page says he is "eager to contribute to wiser government in Australia," with reliable baseload power a first example.
The Gazette reported he would keep speaking out on life, family and energy policy, and said he was "fed up with the way we're governed these days."
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
In April 2025 he said "Politicians have created a cost-of-living crisis through net zero policies."
The Sentinel Times reported he listed cost of living, housing and energy-policy pressure on families as key issues.
Party platform (national policy page, not candidate-specific): lift the tax-free threshold to $30,000, income splitting for couples, and family tax reductions for a single-earner household with dependent children.
Crime and community safety
No personal statement on crime found.
Party platform (national policy page, not candidate-specific): enforce drug laws, close drug injecting centres, rehabilitation rather than prison for first offences by young people, and phase out poker machines.
Housing affordability and supply
The Sentinel Times reported he listed housing among his 2025 key issues; no policy of his own is stated.
Party platform (national policy page, not candidate-specific): release more land, cut red and green tape on new homes, support modular housing, extend the first home buyers grant to existing houses, and reduce immigration.
State government debt and fiscal management
No personal statement on debt or budgets found.
Party platform (national policy page, not candidate-specific): tackle government debt, reduce the size of government, cut red and green tape for small business, and reduce the small-business company tax rate.
Infrastructure and public transport delivery
Not detailed in sources reviewed.
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
At the 7 September 2026 Gazette profile he said "We need a government that treasures children, supports families and stands for biological truth."
In April 2025 he said government was "putting pressure on parents’ rights to educate their children in the faith-based school of their choice."
His page's donation text says support helps Family First "combat harmful gender ideologies and protect children from radical indoctrination in schools."
Party platform (national policy page, not candidate-specific): support parents' choice of state, faith-based or home education, return the national curriculum to the basics, remove gender-identity material from school curricula, and support school chaplaincy.
Health and healthcare access
He supports a new West Gippsland Hospital, telling the Gazette "we need an updated [hospital]" and that he is "very happy to support that."
His page text says Family First is "a staunch defender of the sanctity of life from conception to natural death" and opposes "abortion-on-demand and euthanasia."
Party platform (national policy page, not candidate-specific): crisis pregnancy support, informed-consent and cooling-off requirements for abortion, bans on late-term and sex-selection abortion, and protection for conscientious objection.
Urban planning and housing density
Not detailed in sources reviewed.
Climate and energy transition
His page says he wants "baseload power" to be "realistically sought from either coal, gas, or hydro" with "nuclear power" "seriously explored."
It says he sees the planet's warming as "a cyclic matter" and calls destroying the environment and prime farmland "recklessly in the pursuit of a ridiculously expensive woke dream" disastrous for the economy.
The Gazette reported on 21 September 2026 that he would move Narracan away from renewables for baseload power and is pro-nuclear, and that he questioned laws letting major renewable projects proceed over landholder objections.
In April 2025, as Monash federal candidate, he said Australia must "urgently abandon net zero, the Paris accords, and the rollout of wind turbines and solar factories."
Party platform (national policy page, not candidate-specific): end Net Zero targets, abolish renewable subsidies, keep coal stations open, green-light nuclear, and ban subsidised wind and solar on agricultural land, native forest or virgin land.
Treaty and First Nations affairs
Not detailed in sources reviewed.
Regional and rural Victoria
His page says "destroying our environment and prime farmland recklessly" for what it calls "a ridiculously expensive woke dream" would be disastrous for the economy.
The Gazette reported he questioned laws that allow major projects to proceed over landholder objections.
Party platform (national policy page, not candidate-specific): ban subsidised wind and solar on agricultural land, and encourage new industries and manufacturing in regional areas.
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.
He supports a new West Gippsland Hospital, saying "we need an updated [hospital]" (Gazette, 21 September 2026). RReported — GAZETTE-DETH-SEP26Warragul and Drouin Gazette, "Family First focus on Narracan" (21 Sept 2026)View source
The Gazette reported he questioned laws that let major renewable projects proceed over landholder objections. RReported — GAZETTE-DETH-SEP26Warragul and Drouin Gazette, "Family First focus on Narracan" (21 Sept 2026)View source
His energy position (coal, gas, hydro, nuclear, end Net Zero) matches Family First's national energy policy. SSelf-stated — FF-DETHLEFS-2026, FF-POL-ENERGYFamily First Party Australia, "Geoff Dethlefs, Candidate for Narracan"View sourceFamily First Party Australia, "Energy Policy"View source
Family First's policy pages are national rather than Victorian, so his state-level positions cannot be matched to a Victorian platform; the party's 2026 candidates page lists him for Narracan. SSelf-stated — FF-VIC2026Family First Party Australia, "Victorian Election (2026 candidates)"View source
Track record & prior candidacies
Contested the 2025 federal election in Monash for Family First, receiving 1,801 first-preference votes (1.76%); Liberal Mary Aldred held the seat. VVerified — WP-MONASH25Wikipedia, "Division of Monash (2025 result)"View source
The Gazette reported he ran in Monash last year and is standing again for state government to represent the party's values, hoping to build on that result. RReported — GAZETTE-DETH-SEP26Warragul and Drouin Gazette, "Family First focus on Narracan" (21 Sept 2026)View source
Campaign, money & endorsements
Campaign logistics
Endorsements & Donations
Per the VEC's own funding guidance for registered political parties (accessed 2026-09-24), public funding is paid to the registered party, not to individual candidates. Family First Victoria appears on the VEC's list of currently registered parties (first registered 6 October 2022, re-registered 25 November 2024), and is eligible if at least one endorsed candidate receives at least 4% of first-preference votes or is elected.
The amount is based on the party's audited statement of expenditure, the votes its candidates receive and legislated maximums, at an indexed per-vote rate that the VEC's indexation page (accessed 2026-09-24) lists as $7.70 for lower-house candidates in 2026-27, up from $7.46 the year before. The VEC's funding page notes it is under review following the Electoral Further Amendment Act 2026, so these rules may change before the election.