The slogan "it is OK to be white" is used by the white supremacist and alt-right movements.



23 Liberal and National senators voted in favour of Hanson's motion, including communications minister Mitch Fifield, trade minister Simon Birmingham, Indigenous affairs minister Nigel Scullion, small business minister Michaelia Cash, deputy leader of the Nationals and minister for sport Bridget McKenzie, resources minister Matt Canavan, assistant minister for home affairs Linda Reynolds, assistant minister for treasury Zed Seselja, assistant minister for agriculture Richard Colbeck, and the assistant minister for international development Anne Ruston.

The following day, after the government faced significant backlash over the motion, finance minister Mathias Cormann said at a press conference that the government's intention had been to vote against the motion when it first came up in September. But when it was put forward again, in October, an "administrative error" in attorney-general Christian Porter's office meant that it "slipped through".