Voice referendum poll shows less than half of Australia is planning to vote ‘Yes’

A new poll has revealed that less than half of the country is planning vote ‘Yes’ for the Indigenous Voice to Parliament referendum. 

The Newspoll data found just 46 per cent of voting-aged Australians are backing Anthony Albanese’s signature policy, with 43 per cent opposing it. 

The remaining 11 per cent said they didn’t know whether they would support it or not.

It’s a concerning sign for the Prime Minister’s ‘Yes’ campaign after previous polls suggested a higher level of support – above 50 per cent.

But the government has claimed all signs still point towards the referendum succeeding – opening the door to establish an Indigenous advisory body to Parliament and enshrine First Nations People in the Constitution.

The poll, conducted for The Australian, is the first to ask voters the exact question that will be asked at the ballot box when the referendum is held in the second half of this year. 

The government is still ‘optimistic’ the referendum on the Voice to parliament will suceed. Pictured: Invasion Day protest in Sydney, 2023

Women, young Australians and those who lived in the city with a university education are more likely to vote Yes, according to the results.

Men are slightly more inclined to vote no, while those over the age of 50, along with non-university educated Australians and people living in regional areas expressed the greatest opposition to voting Yes.

Going by political parties – 63 per cent of Coalition voters intend to vote against establishing an Indigenous Voice while just over 75 per cent of Labor voters support it.

But the government is ultimately hoping the support of young people will be enough to win the majority of voters in the majority of states it needs to succeed.

‘That young cohort will be enough to counter the ‘no’ vote and I think it will be the young people who will deliver Indigenous voice for Australia,’ Cabinet minister Don Farrell told the National Press Club on Thursday.

‘If it (referendum) was held this Saturday, I think it would get up.

‘The majority of Australians voting for it and there would be a majority of states.’

Senator Farrell said he was still ‘optimistic’ about the referendum on the Voice to parliament.

‘We’ve tried the republic, it didn’t work, so I think the voice is the correct one,’ he said.

‘There’s no other people in our community who suffered such disadvantage as Indigenous Australians, and it’s time that we had recognition in our constitution for them.’

The poll is a concerning sign for the Prime Minister’s ‘Yes’ campaign after previous polls suggested a higher level of support – above 50 per cent 

Meanwhile, the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists and the Australian Indigenous Doctors Association have backed the proposed constitutional change.

The Indigenous voice would lead to a significant step forward and would also result in better mental health outcomes, the college said in a statement.

‘We are acutely aware of the trauma inflicted on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples due to the ongoing impact of colonisation, dispossession, and systemic racism and inequality,’ it added.

Australian Indigenous Doctors Association chief executive Donna Burns said the voice would improve the wellbeing of Indigenous people.

‘The data overwhelmingly demonstrates that an unacceptable health gap persists due to the health inequities experienced by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples,’ she said.

‘The position that AIDA holds is based on our vision to rectify the continued health disparity that disproportionately affects Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders.’

Laws to set up the Indigenous voice referendum passed the House of Representatives on Wednesday.

The bill, which will finalise the referendum question and constitutional changes put to the public, will now go to the Senate.

It’s expected to pass federal parliament later this month, with the referendum to be held between October and December.

Indigenous Australians Minister Linda Burney urged people who did not know much about the voice to consider the inequality people faced before making up their minds.

‘I would say to those people…look into your heart and look into the situation Aboriginal people are in in this country,’ she said.