Victorian state election candidates for One Nation include a former Liberal with alleged underworld connections, a naturopath who supported a disputed claim by Donald Trump about paracetamol and autism, and a former local government official who lost his driving licence due to drink-driving. Pauline Hanson, the founder of One Nation, recently announced Warren Pickering as the party’s Victorian leader and upper house candidates at a press conference. Since then, the party has been using social media to reveal its list of candidates, with 51 of the 88 lower house seats now filled. One of the candidates, Michael Piastrino, launched his campaign for the Berwick seat, which is currently held by Liberal Brad Battin with a narrow margin of 4.7%. The campaign event was attended by Malaki Salesui, who was convicted in 2021 for involvement in an organised car-theft ring. Another attendee, Mick Mantzaris, who had pleaded guilty in 2012 to possessing testosterone and misleading police, posted on Instagram about the event. Mantzaris was once targeted in a drive-by shooting and was described by police at the time as an associate of outlaw motorcycle gang members. Piastrino, a hairdresser, previously ran for the Liberal party in the 2022 election but had to issue an apology after making a controversial claim about the Victorian Premier. He said he met Salesui and Mantzaris through his church and emphasized that he was not judging people but wanted to help them. Despite the controversies, One Nation has reportedly improved its candidate vetting process, including more thorough background checks and social media monitoring. Other candidates have faced scrutiny for their past actions. Ben Lucas, running for Narracan, resigned from local government in 2021 after being convicted of drink-driving and dangerous driving. He recently faced additional charges related to operating an aquatic facility without proper registration. Meanwhile, Elita Dabrowski, a naturopath running in Sunbury, previously supported Trump’s claim that paracetamol is linked to autism, a claim that has been widely disputed by scientists. Some One Nation candidates have deleted or modified their social media posts after announcing their candidacies, possibly to avoid further controversy.