The yes campaign for an Indigenous voice to parliament is officially beginning this week as the government announces that Australians will be lining up at ballot boxes in October.
The launch follows months of campaigning from the Labor government with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese urging Australians to vote yes on the upcoming referendum countless times.
However, the launch in Adelaide will have a noticeable lack of politicians.
The lack of political players is part of an effort to take the discussion back to the start, and to remind Australians that the idea of the voice came from the Uluru Dialogues and not from the floors of parliament.
Speaking to the Sydney Morning Herald, organiser and director of From the Heart Dean Parkin said that the launch would focus on community.
“Bringing the conversations back to where they should be, taking it away from the commentators and the politicians in Canberra and bringing it back to Australians in communities across the nation,” he said.
The move comes as Indigenous grassroots campaigns across the country adopted a “Treaty Before Voice” stance during this years Invasion day rallies as support for the advisory group weakens.
Research conducted by the yes campaign in recent weeks has shown that shown that strong support for the voice is waning with support falling from 53 per cent to 47 per cent.
The trend a shows rise of “soft” yes supporters who are more apprehensive to support the voice, however when respondents were forced to say “yes or no” 60 per cent said that they would vote for the enshrined body.
