The existential crisis facing Coalition after ‘good old-fashioned flogging’

The Coalition has existential questions to face after being smashed at the Farrer byelection by One Nation and an independent candidate.

David Farley won the seat in resounding fashion for One Nation the first time the minor party had won a seat in the federal House of Representatives and broke the Coalition's 77 -ear stronghold on the rural New South Wales seat that was vacated by former Liberal leader Sussan Ley.

Speaking on Weekend Today, Nationals MP and former leader David Littleproud admitted the result wasn't pretty for the Coalition.

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David Littleproud admitted it was a tough night for the Coalition, saying voters had sent a strong message.

"It's a good old-fashioned flogging, that's the reality of it," he said.

"You've got to face into it, and understand that the people of Farrer are sending a message."

Littleproud claimed it was a protest vote not just against the Liberal Party, but also against the Albanese government, and said the Coalition needed to unite behind values after deserting them following last year's landslide election defeat.

"The Coalition wanted to walk away from all its policies, and we stood for nothing," he said.

"What happened is Pauline Hanson, a canny politician for 30 years, walked in and took up that space, and stood for much of the values we fight for."

The Liberal Party recorded 12.6 per cent of the vote in the Farrar byelection with the Nationals getting just 9.76 per cent as of Sunday morning, with One Nation leading the two-party preferred vote against Independent Michelle Milthorpe by a margin of 7.3 per cent.

Nine News political editor Charles Croucher said the decimation of the Liberal Party vote was a sign it was losing more and more of Australia, after losing urban areas in large numbers at the two previous federal elections.

"They are running out of places to start winning seats," he said.

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"It was going to be the party of the outer suburbs it clearly can't be the party of the bush anymore if that's the result that's coming in."

Croucher said the party was stuck between a rock and a hard place as forces on the left and right of politics continue to take voters the Liberal Party used to rely on for decades.

"What we're seeing is the Liberal party being stuck between this surge of One Nation on the right, the climate-minded independent, and Labor who are winning in the cities," he said.

"It's squeezing the Liberal Party, the party of Menzies, Howard, what was naturally the party of government, out of contention at all."

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