After the Voice

This article explores the failure of the ‘Voice’ referendum in Australia in 2023, by reference to Australian political culture. It argues that the culture has been shaped by the dominance of responsible government, the particular form of representative democracy as practised in Australia, precluding the development of a set of beliefs and behaviours better attuned to the requirements of a mandatory constitutional referendum. To this end, the first section of the article traces the impact of responsible government over time on four aspects of referendum practice: the provision of official information to voters, the use of compulsory voting, Commonwealth government influence over general constitutional review bodies, and belief in the possibilities of ‘bipartisanship’ to overcome the record of referendum failure. The second section of the article traces the influence of political culture on the form and process of the Voice referendum, with particular reference to shaping the proposal for change, the behaviour of the major parliamentary parties, and the failure to adequately take account of the experience and potential of the sub-national level of government, in the Australian federation. A brief concluding section suggests the need for more deliberate development of a specifically referendum culture, drawing on experience in Australian history and elsewhere.