Pauline Hanson’s One Nation party dropped its candidate for the seat of Adelaide on the eve of the South Australian state election after revealing he has an active arrest warrant in the United Kingdom.
Aoi Baxter, 31, was disendorsed on Friday after the party learned of his failure to attend a British court to face charges of sexually touching a woman without consent in September 2023. The sudden removal comes just hours before voters head to the polls on Saturday, sending shockwaves through the political world.
One Nation issued a formal statement on Friday confirming they were entirely unaware of the overseas legal proceedings. The party stated that a standard vetting process had failed to flag the international charges.
“Today we have been informed Mr Baxter has a warrant in the United Kingdom for failing to appear at a court hearing,” the One Nation statement read. “This was not disclosed to One Nation by Mr Baxter.”
The party noted it had conducted a nation-wide police check on the candidate prior to his endorsement, which returned no issues. Following the revelation, One Nation scrubbed Baxter’s profile from its official website.
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“Mr Baxter is no longer a One Nation candidate as a result of this news,” the party continued on Friday. “One Nation will cooperate fully with law enforcement regarding this matter. We have been unable to contact Mr Baxter.”
A representative from the crime division of the British Courts and Tribunals Service confirmed the active warrant to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. The official verified that a warrant without bail was issued for Baxter’s non-attendance, noting that discovering his current location “would assist the court and relevant authorities.”
Prior to his sudden Friday disendorsement, Baxter, who also goes by the name Trent Baxter, was heavily promoted in official campaign materials. His candidate profile pitched him as a “new generation” option for Adelaide, highlighting a background as a small business owner and a career in the Australian Defence Force.