Independent Victorian senator Lidia Thorpe said she would not lead a progressive No campaign against the Voice.Credit:Alex Ellinghausen
She said she was considering writing “treaty” on her ballot paper rather than casting a vote when the referendum is held later this year,with October 14 the government’s preferred date.
“I’m not comfortable with the racist rhetoric of a No campaign,and to have a powerless Voice that has parliamentary supremacy over it at all times is not something that I was hoping for in 2023. I think we’ve come too far as a nation to just tinker around the edges,” Thorpe said.
“I’ll be giving a platform to Aboriginal people who have real concerns ... those concerns are very similar to the issues I have but they’ve made a decision to say No,and I haven’t. I’ve told them that. I’ll give them a voice but I do not sit in that camp of No.”
Support for the Voice has fallen from58 to 53 per cent over the past month when voters are asked to choose either yes or no in a question akin to the referendum,according to a recent exclusive survey for this masthead.
Prime MinisterAnthony Albanese this week implored Australians to be on the “right side of history” and vote Yes,as Opposition Leader Peter Dutton argued the proposed model would“re-racialise” Australia and undermine equality of citizenship.
Pressed on whether progressive voters might interpret her criticisms of the Voice as a defacto No,Thorpe said they would need to make their own decisions,adding:“I’m not part of the No camp. I’ve never been part of the No camp,and I don’t intend to be part of a No camp.”