This Saturday, Australia will hold its first referendum to change its constitution in nearly a quarter of a century.
The referendum would ask for indigenous recognition and the establishment of a representative body that could make non-binding recommendations to Parliament. 17,676,347 people are required to vote, representing 97.7 per cent of the eligible population. In Australia, every registered resident has to vote in elections and referendums.
The Australian Electoral Commission said on Thursday that about a quarter of all voters had already cast their ballots at early polling stations. About 125,000 people have voted through mobile polling units and 2 million have applied to vote by post. Most embassies are open to Australians who want to vote while overseas.
On Saturday, more than 7,000 polling stations will be open across the country from 8 am. Everybody will be able to vote in churches, schools and community centres.
Referendums, in Australia, are difficult to pass. Since 1901, only eight out of 44 have succeeded. Success requires a double majority: a majority of voters nationwide and a majority in at least four of Australia’s six states. Such an outcome is unlikely on Saturday. Opinion polls point to defeat for the pro-choice campaign. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is expected to address the nation on Saturday night.
Australia’s indigenous people include Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, who are culturally distinct.
Indigenous people had lived in Australia for at least 60,000 years before the British arrived in 1788. The current Indigenous population is over 800,000 and in 2021, about 3.8 per cent of the country’s population, making Indigenous people the most disadvantaged group.
