Voters and candidates will benefit from beefed-up security arrangements around a state election after an alleged targeted attack on an MP, a premier says.
Federal member for Indi Helen Haines was struck by a four-wheel-drive vehicle outside her electorate office in Wangaratta, in northern Victoria, on Monday afternoon.
Police allege Brendan Nugent, 43, deliberately drove the LandCruiser into Dr Haines, who remained in critical condition in hospital on Wednesday after both her legs were amputated.
The incident has sparked debate about whether public officials are sufficiently protected from threats against their safety, including during the lead-up to the Victorian state election in November.
Premier Ben Carroll said additional security resources would be put in place for the November 28 poll.
"The (Victorian Electoral Commission), Victoria Police and all political parties take the safety of this election very seriously," he told reporters on Wednesday.
"What has happened must be a turning point for political debate in Victoria and around Australia."
The state Labor leader did not say where those extra resources would be directed, but insisted authorities were collaborating closely.
He said the level of co-operation between Victoria Police and the electoral commission was "unprecedented".
"Safety is sacrosanct for all Victorians leading into this election," he said.
Mr Carroll discussed security arrangements at a cabinet meeting on Wednesday, and during talks with the Chief Commissioner of Victoria Police Mike Bush and Victorian Electoral Commissioner Sven Bluemmel.
Mr Bluemmel told AAP the commission had developed strategies to protect Victorians in the lead-up to the election, as outlined in its August service plan.
"Every Victorian has the right to participate in the upcoming election safely and free from intimidation or interference of any kind," he said.
"My team and I are working hard to make sure that continues."
Federal shadow defence minister James Paterson said on Wednesday he feared the Victorian election could be a flashpoint for simmering community tensions.
Voting centres in his home state, he told ABC's Radio National, could be a "focal point for people who were angry and frustrated".
Also on Wednesday, Dr Haines' husband Phil fronted the media outside Melbourne hospital The Alfred alongside Governor-General Sam Mostyn.
He confirmed doctors had been unable to save Dr Haines' second leg, after the first was amputated earlier in the week.
"Helen's road to recovery will be long and difficult, but we know she is a fighter," he told reporters.
Ms Mostyn, a close friend of Dr Haines, said the country was "still reeling" from the attack, adding the outpouring of support from the community weighed against the catastrophe of the alleged incident.
She said she had been providing King Charles III with regular updates.
As the federal MP recovered in hospital on Wednesday, her alleged attacker faced court for the first time, a few hours' drive northeast of Melbourne at Wangaratta Magistrates Court.
Nugent will remain behind bars for months while counter-terrorism authorities investigate the alleged targeted attack.
The Tarrawingee man has been charged with dangerous driving causing serious harm, intentionally causing serious harm, and causing harm to a Commonwealth public official over the incident.
Also on his charge sheet are further counts of cultivating and possessing marijuana, court documents show.
Nugent, who sat quietly in the dock in the packed courtroom, did not apply for bail and was remanded in custody to face court again in February.
Police have not ruled out further charges, including attempted murder, Victoria Police Commissioner Mike Bush said on Wednesday.