“October 14 is a proud day in Australia’s history and it should be celebrated as our Unity Day. It is a day where every Australian can come together and celebrate what unites us rather than what divides us,” said Daniel Wild, Deputy Executive Director of the Institute of Public Affairs.
Today, Australia marks one year since the defeat of the divisive, elitist proposal to enshrine race in our Constitution via the Voice to Parliament. The rejection of the Voice by 60 per cent of Australians represents the most decisive result of any significant political contest in our nation’s history.
“We should all rejoice that there is much more that unites Australians than divides us,” said Mr Wild.
“The Australian way of life is based on fairness, equality, freedom, and tolerance. The result of the Voice to Parliament referendum renewed our deep commitment to these principles. Australians understood it was an elitist challenge to these fundamental ideals, and we should celebrate unity.”
The IPA, in collaboration with Advance, recently released the most detailed survey yet undertaken on the Voice to Parliament referendum. It found:
- Australians voted No because they believed the Voice would divide the country.
- Even with bipartisan support the Voice would have failed.
- Big business and elite support for the Voice likely increased support for No.
“The facts show, Australians voted ‘No’ because they did not want our nation to be permanently divided by race. Australians fully understood what their vote meant, which is why they rejected the proposed change,” said Mr Wild.
Despite the overwhelming rejection of the Voice to Parliament by mainstream Australians, the elites and the political class have continued to push their divisive agenda by other means.
“While mainstream Australians won the referendum fair and square, you would be forgiven for not knowing it. Today, ‘treaty’ processes are underway in Queensland and Victoria, with New South Wales likely to follow suit,” said Mr Wild.
“South Australia still operates its own state-based Voice to Parliament and so-called ‘truth telling’ processes, or Makarrata, are being set up in an attempt to re-write Australian history to justify reparations.”
“The defeat of the Voice to Parliament was a transformative moment for our nation. However, the referendum also exposed the real and growing gulf between mainstream Australians and the political class, elites and major corporations.”
“The response of the political class and elites to the defeat of the referendum shows us our democratic institutions are in crisis. They are quite content to ignore the overwhelming verdict of mainstream Australians as it does not suit their radical political agenda.”
“In what was the most consequential vote since Federation, an overwhelming majority of Australians voted for equality and rejected elite identity politics. At a time when social cohesion is under unprecedented strain, Australians chose unity over division,” said Mr Wild.
To download the IPA’s research, Australians Speak 2023, the most comprehensive study of attitudes towards the Voice to Parliament referendum, click here.
