The Constitution
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice Referendum
14 October 2023
Australia votes against a proposal to recognise First Nations people in the Constitution.
On 14 October 2023, Australians voted on a proposal to alter the Australian Constitution to recognise the First Peoples of Australia by establishing an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice. It was Australia’s first referendum in the 21st century. The referendum did not pass.
The call for constitutional recognition of First Nations people has been debated for decades. This ongoing discussion and consultation led to the First Nations National Constitutional Convention in 2017 and the release of the Uluru Statement from the Heart. The Australian Labor Party made progressing the Uluru Statement from the Heart an election promise during the 2022 federal election. After winning the election, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said he would 'answer the call for a Voice to be enshrined in the Constitution’ in his victory speech.
For a referendum to pass, a proposed alteration must be approved by a national majority of voters and a majority of voters in more than half of the states. In the 2023 referendum, 39.9 per cent of formal votes were in favour of this change, and no state had a majority which approved the proposal. The Australian Capital Territory was the only state or territory with a majority of 'Yes' votes.