Legislative Assembly · District of Nepean
Darren Hercus
Last verified 29 Sept 2026
Seat context — Nepean›
Nepean is a Liberal-held Mornington Peninsula seat that had an eventful year. Sam Groth, who won it in 2022 with 48.1% of first preferences and 56.4% two-party-preferred against Labor's Chris Brayne, resigned on 13 February 2026 citing public pressure on his family during a defamation dispute. At the 2 May 2026 by-election, which Labor did not contest, the Liberals' Anthony Marsh won with 38.7% of first preferences and 63.2% to 36.8% against independent Tracee Hutchison; One Nation's Darren Hercus polled 24.5% and the Greens' Sianan Healy 9.4%. The 2026 field so far is four candidates: Marsh, Hercus, Healy and Family First's Mike Brown; no Labor candidate is listed and Hutchison does not appear on The Tally Room's list. The Tally Room says the Liberals are favourites to retain the seat.
Background
Platform
Where they stand, issue by issue — grounded in 2026 Victorian polling, not assumed. Every position is tagged with how we know it.
Small business support (levies, taxes and compliance costs), housing affordability and cost-of-living relief, emergency services funding, road maintenance and homelessness.
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 housing affordability and cost-of-living relief as priorities.
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 emergency services funding and public safety as priorities.
The party platform, as summarised by the Australian Election Tracker, would tighten bail and sentencing for repeat youth offenders.
Housing affordability and supply
Says "owning a home in Australia is becoming nearly impossible" and names homelessness, citing about 140 rough sleepers a night in the electorate.
The party platform, as summarised by the Australian Election Tracker, would ban foreign ownership of residential property.
State government debt and fiscal management
Wants relief from government-imposed levies, taxes, rates and compliance costs for small business.
Infrastructure and public transport delivery
Names road infrastructure maintenance as a priority.
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
Not detailed in sources reviewed.
Health and healthcare access
Not detailed in sources reviewed.
Urban planning and housing density
Not detailed in sources reviewed.
Climate and energy transition
Not detailed in sources reviewed.
Treaty and First Nations affairs
Not detailed in sources reviewed.
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-DH, ET-ON-POLICYOne Nation Victoria, "Darren Hercus for Nepean"View sourceAustralian Election Tracker, "One Nation policy profile — 2026 Victorian election"View source
No point of divergence was found.
Track record & prior candidacies
He was One Nation's candidate at the 2 May 2026 Nepean by-election, receiving 9,941 votes (24.5%). VVerified — WIKI-NEP-BYEWikipedia, "2026 Nepean state by-election"View source
He is not among the candidates in the 2018 or 2022 Nepean results. VVerified — WIKI-NEP-RESWikipedia, "Electoral results for the district of Nepean"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.
Hercus polled 24.5% at the May 2026 by-election, well above the 4% mark, so that campaign qualified for public funding.