A West Australian upper house member, formerly known as Ben Dawkins, has officially changed his name to “Austin Trump” as he prepares for the upcoming state election. This change was confirmed through an official Births, Deaths and Marriage document shared on social media, marking it as a legitimate political protest against the Labor party, which expelled him in 2023 after his domestic violence restraining order breaches became public. Dawkins, now affiliated with One Nation, was not endorsed by the party for election candidacy. He is campaigning on issues surrounding gender laws, firearm reforms, and the live sheep export ban, expressing a desire to emulate Donald Trump by challenging what he calls “woke left nonsense.” Political reactions have been mixed, with WA Premier Roger Cook astonished and laughing at the name change, while Liberal Party Leader Libby Mettam dismissed it as “very juvenile.” Despite the controversy, Austin believes this stunt will help him retain his parliamentary seat in the election scheduled for 8 March; if not, he has no plans to revert his name. He aims to inspire a significant political shift in WA, reminiscent of Trump’s inaugural speech.
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