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‘Disgusted’: Gillard and Albanese condemn ‘ditch the witch’ campaign against Victorian premier Jacinta Allan

Former Prime Minister Julia Gillard and current PM Anthony Albanese have condemned a mobile billboard targeting Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan with the phrase 'Ditch the Witch.' Allan dismissed leadership speculation and vowed to continue calling out sexist commentary, while One Nation leader Pauline Hanson advised her to 'suck it up, sweetheart.'

By Tertius News AI Desk 2 outlets · 3 articles Version 1 Coverage Jun 7–9, 2026 Published Aug 14

Lead

A mobile billboard featuring AI-generated images of Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan wearing a black pointed hat alongside the phrase "Ditch the Witch" has sparked widespread condemnation from political leaders, including former Prime Minister Julia Gillard and current Prime Minister Anthony Albanese. The billboard, which has been travelling around Melbourne for several weeks, has reignited debates about sexism in Australian politics and prompted Allan to dismiss leadership speculation while vowing to continue calling out what she described as "sexist, misogynist, hateful" commentary.

Coverage Comparison

The mobile billboard, reportedly part of a "secret and well-funded political campaign" according to Allan, has drawn criticism from across the political spectrum. Prime Minister Albanese labelled the campaign "sexist" and said it was "totally unacceptable and has no place in public life." He added that there was a need to "turn the temperature down" amid increasing threats against politicians, and called for an end to "denigrating people in such a personal way."

Former Prime Minister Julia Gillard, who was subjected to the same slogan during her tenure in 2011, released a statement via Instagram saying she was "disgusted" to see the phrase resurrected 15 years later. She expressed sadness that progress in reducing sexism in politics appeared to be "cast aside," and called for the signs to be removed, questioning why "women and girls in Victoria should be subjected to such visible misogyny."

Victoria's opposition leader, Jess Wilson, also condemned the billboard, according to reports. However, One Nation leader Pauline Hanson took a different stance, telling Sky News that she had been called a witch "long before" Allan and later doubling down on her criticism, saying "probably stronger words might be used for her," and adding "Jacinta – if the shoe fits, then wear it."

Key Claims

The billboard featured AI-generated images of Premier Allan wearing a black pointed hat and the phrase "Ditch the Witch."
Prime Minister Albanese called the campaign "sexist" and "totally unacceptable," urging people to focus on policy disagreements rather than personal attacks.
Former PM Gillard expressed disgust at the reuse of the slogan and called for the signs to be removed.
Allan dismissed leadership speculation amid reports that Labor MPs had revived conversations about a possible spill.
Allan responded to Hanson's comments by saying, "Pauline Hanson chooses to barrack for the bullies. I choose to fight them."
Hanson defended her remarks, saying she had been called a witch herself and that "stronger words might be used" for Allan.
The billboard was reportedly funded by Franco Puleo, owner of the Gotham City brothel, though this claim has not been independently verified.
A Freshwater Strategy poll reportedly showed Victorian Labor's primary vote slumping to 23%, but this data has not been independently confirmed.

Perspectives

Premier Allan framed the billboard as part of a broader "corrosive" political debate, stating that "people are entitled to disagree with me. That's democracy. But I care that this attacks women." She expressed gratitude for Gillard's response, saying "it made my heart sing to see Julia's response," and emphasised that "difference" should not be "weaponised in a sexist, misogynist, hateful way."

Pauline Hanson, however, dismissed the criticism, telling Sky News that her remarks were justified given issues such as crime, debt, and allegations of corruption in Victoria. She said "they feel the sooner she's gone, the better," and defended her "suck it up, sweetheart" advice as a reflection of her own experiences.

Julia Gillard's statement highlighted the enduring nature of sexism in politics, noting that while she had seen "things slowly improving," the billboard demonstrated how "this tired old trope" could be resurrected. She called on those responsible to remove the signs, framing the issue as one affecting not only politicians but "women and girls in Victoria."

Timeline

The billboard was first seen in Melbourne several weeks ago, according to reports. On Sunday, Premier Allan publicly criticised the campaign. On Monday morning, Pauline Hanson commented on the issue, and later that evening she doubled down on her remarks. On Tuesday, Allan held a press conference where she addressed the controversy and dismissed leadership speculation. Prime Minister Albanese and former PM Gillard issued their condemnations during this period, with Gillard's statement coming via Instagram on Monday.

Corrections

No corrections have been issued regarding this story. Reports indicate that the billboard has been travelling around Melbourne for "several weeks," though the exact start date has not been confirmed. The funding source for the billboard is attributed to Franco Puleo in one report but remains unverified by other sources.

How each outlet told it

ABC Australia as of Jun 7, 2026, 11:31 PM UTC

Framing: Condemnation of sexist billboard — Critical of sexist commentary

Facts Included:

Jacinta Allan called out political ads about her as sexist
The billboard featured an image of Allan along with the phrase 'Ditch the Witch'
Julia Gillard and Anthony Albanese condemned the billboard
The same derogatory phrase was used in 2011 about Gillard
Federal deputy Liberal leader Jane Hume echoed the prime minister and premier's statements

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The Guardian — World as of Jun 9, 2026, 2:30 AM UTC

Framing: Leadership speculation and sexist commentary — Critical of sexist commentary

Facts Included:

Jacinta Allan dismissed leadership speculation
Allan called out sexist commentary directed at her
Pauline Hanson told Allan to 'suck it up, sweetheart'
Hanson doubled down on her criticism of Allan
Allan said the billboards deliberately chose sexist language and imagery
Julia Gillard and Anthony Albanese condemned the billboard
A Freshwater Strategy poll showed Victorian Labor's primary vote has slumped to 23%

Read the source article →

The Guardian — World as of Jun 8, 2026, 3:30 AM UTC

Framing: Condemnation of sexist billboard — Critical of sexist commentary

Facts Included:

Julia Gillard and Anthony Albanese condemned the billboard
The billboard featured AI-generated images of Allan wearing a black pointed hat
The billboard was paid in part by Franco Puleo, the owner of the Gotham City brothel
The Victorian opposition leader, Jess Wilson, said the opposition had no involvement in the billboards
Pauline Hanson told Allan to 'suck it up, sweetheart'

Read the source article →

What was claimed, and who backed it

Each row is one claim, attributed to the outlet whose wording states it most clearly. Confidence rates how directly the source text states the claim — explicit and unhedged rates high; hedged, pieced-together, or internally inconsistent statements rate lower. It does not measure whether the claim is true. Status counts the distinct outlets we found asserting it — so a single-source claim can still show high confidence, and a multi-source claim can show medium. Every one of those outlets is named beside the status, so you can check the count against the list. For claims extracted before we began storing that list, the row says so: it names the outlet the claim is quoted from and states that we have not recorded which outlets backed it. Outlets wrote at different times, so a figure that evolves — a casualty count, for example — can legitimately differ between rows; check the "as of" time next to each claim's source.

Claim	Confidence	Status
ClaimJacinta Allan dismissed leadership speculation and says she will continue to call out sexist, misogynist, hateful commentary directed at her.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via The Guardian — World as of Jun 9, 2026, 2:30 AM UTC
ClaimPauline Hanson told Jacinta Allan to 'suck it up, sweetheart' and doubled down on her criticism of the premier.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusMulti-source quoted from The Guardian — World as of Jun 9, 2026, 2:30 AM UTC the outlets behind this status were not recorded for this claim
ClaimA truck-mounted billboard featuring AI-generated images of Jacinta Allan wearing a black pointed hat alongside the phrase 'Ditch the witch' has been travelling around Melbourne for several weeks.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusMulti-source quoted from The Guardian — World as of Jun 8, 2026, 3:30 AM UTC the outlets behind this status were not recorded for this claim
ClaimJulia Gillard and Anthony Albanese condemned the billboard, with Gillard saying she was 'disgusted' to see the phrase used again after being subject to it herself during her tenure as prime minister.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusMulti-source quoted from The Guardian — World as of Jun 8, 2026, 3:30 AM UTC the outlets behind this status were not recorded for this claim
ClaimThe billboard was paid in part by Franco Puleo, the owner of the Gotham City brothel.	ConfidenceMedium	StatusSingle-source via The Guardian — World as of Jun 8, 2026, 3:30 AM UTC
ClaimThe Victorian opposition leader, Jess Wilson, said the opposition had no involvement in the billboards.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusMulti-source quoted from The Guardian — World as of Jun 8, 2026, 3:30 AM UTC the outlets behind this status were not recorded for this claim
ClaimA Freshwater Strategy poll showed Victorian Labor's primary vote has slumped to 23%.	ConfidenceMedium	StatusSingle-source via The Guardian — World as of Jun 9, 2026, 2:30 AM UTC

Transparency & Audit Trail

2 outlets · 3 articles consulted: ABC Australia, The Guardian — World 7 claims extracted Version 1 Written 2026-08-14