 "The lawmaker’s name has also been updated on the parliament’s website. Image courtesy: Parliament of Western Australia")
This Australian politician has legally changed his name to align himself with US President Donald Trump.
Previously known as Ben Dawkins, Austin “Aussie” Trump posted a photo on social media of an official registry document dated January 29, confirming his new name.
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Austin shared the official Births, Deaths and Marriages document online, verifying the authenticity of the name change.
The lawmaker’s name has also been updated on the parliament’s website to Austin (Aussie) Letts Trump.
Here’s what we know about him and why he legally changed his name:
Meet the new “Aussie” Trump
An independent lawmaker in Western Australia’s (WA) upper house of parliament, Trump serves in a chamber where the Labor Party holds the majority.
“I’ve launched a political protest against the tyranny and systematic corruption of the Labor government in WA,” he posted on X on Wednesday, signing off as “Aussie.”
“Vote Labor Out! & Drill Baby Drill!,” he wrote in another post, reflecting US President Donald Trump’s stance on expanding oil and gas extraction in the United States.
Initially a Labor party member, Trump was expelled from the party after admitting to 35 breaches of a domestic violence restraining order involving his former partner.
He later joined One Nation and was selected to lead their Legislative Council ticket, but party leader Pauline Hanson later removed him from the position.
Now an independent candidate, he is running in the Western Australian state elections set for March.
He took inspiration for his new first name from former Aussie Rules player Austinn “Aussie” Jones, while his surname pays tribute to the US president.
His newly adopted name, “Hon. Aussie Trump”, is now displayed on the Western Australia parliamentary website.
Why did he change his name legally?
The Australian politician changed his name to Austin “Aussie” Trump as a statement against what he calls “woke lefty nonsense,” following the footsteps of US President Donald Trump.
He described his new name as a protest against the lack of political diversity in parliament, where most lawmakers belong to the centre-left Labor party.
Trump said the name change was intended to push back against left-wing “nonsense.”
“It’s a political protest. It’s not an extreme thing at all,” he said.
The 53-year-old told AFP that without opposition, reforms were being passed without proper scrutiny.
Speaking to 9News, he argued that the change would help him secure a seat in the upcoming state election on March 8.
Admitting that the move was inspired by the US president, he told AFP, “There is value in, not all, but many of the ways that Trump has approached things. He is calling out government wastage, government voting against people or acting against people. He is good at calling that out and calling out what we might call woke lefty nonsense.”
The politician said he hoped to hear from his US namesake but had not received a response yet. He also confirmed he had “no plans” to revert to his original name.
Political analyst Peter Kennedy told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) that the move was a “great publicity stunt” from a politician known for controversy.
With upper house candidates needing as little as two per cent of the vote to secure a seat under Western Australia’s revised system, Kennedy stated that any publicity boost could help.
“You don’t need a big proportion of votes to gain election to the upper house. It’s less than three per cent of the ballot vote,” he told ABC.
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‘This is cringe and attention-seeking’: Locals react
Voters outside Trump’s Bunbury office were unimpressed by his rebrand.
“I think it’s ostentatious, and I would not entertain the idea of that sort of person,” a local told ABC.
He expressed concern that Australian politicians were attempting to align themselves with Donald Trump’s popularity.
Another local said she was not entirely opposed to Donald Trump but disliked the name change.
“That’s extremely cringe and obviously attention-seeking,” she told the media outlet.
Donald Trump’s influence on Australia
Political analysts are watching to see how much Donald Trump’s influence will shape Australia’s political landscape ahead of the federal election.
“There will be a ripple effect in other countries, and in Australia quite likely, but it may be a little too early to make predictions,” Kennedy told ABC.
Notably, Trump is not the only Australian politician taking cues from the former US president.
Last month, National Party leader David Littleproud suggested that Australia should “lean into” the gender debate after Trump issued an executive order rejecting transgender recognition.
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US Studies Centre research director Jared Mondschein noted that cultural and political influences between the US and Australia have long been strong, with examples across the political spectrum.
“It’s not exactly novel for one of the politicians here to be adopting what the US has done,” he said.
With inputs from agencies