Australian independent member of parliament Helen Haines speaks to journalists at Parliament House in Canberra, Australia on September 8.
An Australian lawmaker remains in hospital after being hit by a car in what appeared to be a targeted attack outside her electorate office in northern Victoria on Monday, alarming the country’s political ranks and raising concerns about their safety.
Helen Haines, 65, who represents the federal seat of Indi, was struck by a Toyota Landcruiser in the rural city of Wangaratta, about 3:30 p.m. local time on Monday, according to Victoria Police.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the vehicle drove down the main street before turning around and ramming the popular independent politician, who has represented her constituents for seven years. At the time she was standing at the rear of her car, taking items out of the trunk.
Local media suggests she was pinned between two vehicles, and national broadcaster, the ABC, reports that one of her legs was so badly damaged it had to be amputated. Doctors are trying to save the other, the broadcaster added.
In the immediate aftermath, witnesses rushed to Haines’ aid and detained the vehicle’s 43-year-old driver until police arrived, according to Victoria Police Acting Superintendent Ashley Mason.
The alleged offender has been named by local media as Brendan Nugent, who lived in a rural town about 12 kilometers (seven miles) away. Police have not confirmed his name, nor his motive, and are yet to press charges.
Barber Ricky Jefferies told the ABC, he ran out of his shop, grabbed a knife from the driver’s pocket and pulled the driver from the car, before attempting to calm him down.
“I had no choice but to take him out of the car because it was the right and safest thing to do,” Jeffries said. “They didn’t even check the danger, they just ran to help,” he said of other bystanders.
Political violence is rare in Australia, but reports of harassing and threatening behavior against politicians have been rising in the past year, according to Australian Federal Police (AFP) statistics cited by the government.
MP ‘full of integrity’
While police were yet to question the suspect, Albanese was quick to inform the nation that it was a “deliberate act.”
He said he wasn’t aware of any individual threats against Haines, but said the “temperature” of political discourse had “increased in recent times” and urged it to be turned down.
“There’s no place for political violence in a democracy,” he told the ABC on Monday.
Haines was airlifted to Melbourne where she underwent surgery at The Alfred hospital that night. Her condition remains critical. In a statement posted to social media, her family thanked bystanders for their “swift assistance.”
A multi-tiered investigation is underway led by Victoria Police, involving members of the Joint Counter-Terrorism Team, including the AFP, and the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO).
Haines was elected to federal parliament in 2019 as an independent candidate who fought for better healthcare services in rural areas. She has focused her time on integrity in politics, and called for gambling reform, better mental health treatment and an end to the war in Gaza.
Before entering politics, she worked as a midwife, establishing one of the country’s longest running rural midwifery services, according to her website.
“Helen Haines is incredibly hardworking,” Albanese said at a press conference on Monday. “She is fiercely intelligent, but most importantly, she’s just a thoroughly decent human being, full of integrity, and respected right across the Parliament, and from everyone who comes into contact with her.”
As he spoke, police officers were at the scene of the incident, working within a cordoned area near Haines’ electorate office on the main road in Wangaratta, a rural city home to around 30,000 people.
Politicians from all sides of politics paid tribute to Haines, who was admired and respected within the Australian parliament, and variously described by colleagues as a “force for good” and a “beacon of light.” Liberal Party leader Angus Taylor said Monday was a “shocking day for the nation.”
“Australians will be angry and appalled by the attack on Helen outside her electorate office in Wangaratta,” he posted to X. ” Our nation cannot become a place where violent attacks are normalised.”
Pauline Hanson, leader of the right wing One Nation party that’s risen in popularity in recent months, also said there was no place for violence against any elected representative.
“Members of parliament and their staff must be able to serve their communities without fearing for their safety,” she said on X.
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