Decades of Preparation for The Voice to Parliament Idea Destroyed in a Matter of Hours

It took years, even decades, to create a voice in Parliament.

In the end, it only took a few hours for it to be broken.

Not even an hour had passed after the first polls closed before the initial blow fell on the Yes campaign’s hopes: Tasmania voted no. Six minutes later, at just 19:03, NSW provided a monstrous crack.

Just over 20 minutes later, at 7.25pm ​​on Saturday 14 October 2023, ABC election analyst Antony Green announced The Voice’s time of death – South Australia had voted no , the death knell of the Yes campaign.

The rest of the country’s states and the Northern Territory would soon follow. The national capital was the only jurisdiction to vote in favor of recognizing Australia’s first peoples in the constitution with one Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander vote in Parliament.

And with that, it was over.

There was no plan B, no backup.

So what comes next?

In the days that followed, silence would reign. Silence of indigenous leaders who entered a period of mourning.

The irony is that after weeks, even years, when white voices were among the loudest and most toxic, they will eventually be the loudest again. Especially since Parliament returns for a week of sitting only 48 hours later.