Demystifying the Referendum

(Transcript)

Ah, The Voice. Perceived as such a polarising, intense and contested issue. Let’s talk to some
people.

Yes, no, no, yes, no, yes, no, yes, yes, yes, no…

Ok hold up. You might naturally think these were the answers to the question: “How are you
voting in the upcoming voice referendum?”. But it wasn’t. I actually asked Australians if they
have voted in a referendum before.

We haven’t had a referendum in this country since 1999. That means that no voter under the
age of 42 has voted in a federal referendum. That equates to approximately 6.4 million
Australian voters for whom this will be their first referendum based on age alone. Whichever
way you look at it, a referendum and constitutional change (should it occur) is new to most
Australians.

Hey guys, I’m Charlotte and I am a journalism student at university. And from talking to the
young people around me, we have been bombarded with information on the Voice. And once
you have waded through the overwhelming media discourse on the issue, you may not
actually know how voting on the day works if you have not voted in a referendum.

I asked three young Australians what their biggest concerns were in regards to actually voting
on referendum day. For those of us who have never voted in a referendum before, or for those
who need a refresher, here is what you need to know about how to vote.

Albanese has announced that the Indigenous voice to parliament referendum will be held on
the 14 th of October. The process is similar to an election, but not exactly the same.

Welcome to Anabelle. She is an eighteen-year-old girl and a first-time voter. So, Anabelle,
what is your number one query about voting in the upcoming referendum?

“This may sound silly, but I want to know what it will look like to physically go and vote on
the day?”

Well Anabelle, unlike in the United States, where voters must cram in a trip to the polls on a
workday, federal elections and by-elections in Australia are always held on a Saturday, like
our upcoming one.

Picture this you guys: on polling day, you will go to a polling place to vote. A polling place
could be held in a local school or community centre. You can call the AEC, Australian
Electoral Commission, or look on their website for your closest location. There will be more
than 7000 polling places open on the big day from 8am-6pm.

You’re walking into your local public school that has been turned into a polling place, as
local community groups are setting up a grill, handing out sausages wrapped in a slice of
bread. Many Aussies have professed their love for this tradition that goes hand in hand with
voting: democracy sausages. But wait, you can only get your hands on a lunchtime sausage
after you complete your vote.

You always thought voting was so serious, but this large school hall is echoing with voices.
The soft chatter of those speaking with voting staff as they sign in, pens clicking, ballot
papers crinkling as they are folding.

You walk up to a staff member sitting at the desk.

“What is your full name?
“Where do you live?”
“Have you voted before in this referendum?”

The AEC staff will look for your name on the electoral roll and mark it off and then hand you
a ballot paper. A ballot paper is the form that you fill out to show how you want to vote
Anabelle! It’s as easy as that.

Now it is time to introduce our next guest in question, Anthony. He is a 21-year-old male
who has also never voted in a referendum before. Now Anthony, what are you concerned
about in regards to voting in the upcoming referendum?

“Well for me Charlotte, I am wondering about how I need to fill out a ballot paper. Is it easy?
Can you explain it to me?”

Well……, the ballot paper may seem daunting to those who have never filled one out before.
Or even to those who have filled one out in a federal election.

But don’t worry, it is very simple in a referendum.

A referendum is used to ask the Australian people whether they approve of a change being
made to the Commonwealth Constitution, which is Australia’s ultimate law.

In this case, the amendment doesn’t change existing words, but instead adds new words to the
Constitution.

You may be thinking, yeah yeah Charlotte, can you stop blabbing on about complicated
words like amendment, constitution and ultimate law. Well luckily for us, the ballot paper
also doesn’t like long chunks of boring words.

On your little ballot paper, it will not contain the official words of the amendment you will be
voting on. Instead, voters will be asked one simple question:

“A Proposed Law: to alter the Constitution to recognise the First Peoples of Australia by
establishing an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice.
Do you approve this proposed alteration?”

A single box is then provided, and you fill in your ballot paper by either writing “yes” or
“no” in that box.

“And Charlotte, there’s been a lot of talk about whether to put a tick or a cross, what is the
deal with all that?”

Well Anthony, there’s a thing called “savings provisions”, which allows AEC staff to count
votes that don’t strictly adhere to the instructions. And under the savings provisions, a tick
may be acceptable because a tick always means yes. But a cross would not be, because some
people use a cross to mean yes, and some use it to mean no- so the intention is unclear. To
ensure your vote counts, just write “yes” or “no”.

When you have filled out your ballot paper, you will put it in a ballot box near your voting
booth. You may be thinking: now that I have voted, can I finally eat that damn democracy
sausage. Or maybe for all our Gen Zed and millennial listeners, it’s more of a vegan sausage
alternative. But yes you can! Congrats! But after speaking with other first-time voters, there’s
still some confusion on what happens after the vote.

Let’s chat to our third and final guest Jason. Jason is a twenty-year-old university student.
Jason, tell us what you’re curious about.

“Well, I’m just wondering, how do our votes actually get counted to end in a result?”

Well to become law, the proposed change to the Constitution must be approved by a ‘double
majority’ of electors voting for the changes. That may sound confusing but all it means is that
there must be two things:

Number 1: a national majority of electors from all states and territories

And number 2: a majority of electors in a majority of states. This means in order for the voice
to parliament to pass, there needs to be a majority of YES voters in at least 4 out of the 6
states.

“And when is the final result actually released?”

Well Jason Results will become available progressively from 6pm on polling night via the
AEC tally room on the AEC website. While there could be a public indication ofjas potential
results on the night, if it is close it may take days or several weeks for the count of additional
pre-poll votes, overseas votes and postal votes too.

But by this time, your work as a voter is done and it is simply a waiting game.

So, now our three guests, and you listeners, are fully information on absolutely everything
there is to know about voting day. For everyone voting, especially first-timers, a referendum
can be scary. But regardless of the overwhelming hustle and bustle of voting day, it is special
to know that your own vote will make a difference to what happens to our country. Thank
you for listening and happy voting!

(I have sourced most information from the Australian Electoral Commission and MyGov, as
well as my interviews with Jason Lin, Anthony Clark and Anabelle Lyons).

Exit music.