Australians’ voting in the voice referendum has gone relatively smoothly, with many resolute in their intention to write ‘yes’ or ‘no’ before they came through polling booths’ gates.
The Australian Electoral Commission was yet to determine the strength of voting centre turnout as of Saturday afternoon, but the referendum day followed the nation’s biggest pre-polling figures with more than one million votes cast on Friday alone.
‘Yes’ campaigners far outnumbered ‘no’ campaigners handing out flyers at polling places across the nation, as did signs in favour of the voice.
Prominent voice opponent Warren Mundine reflected on the lack of ‘no’ campaign volunteers.
“The problem we have is that we don’t have as many volunteers as the ‘yes’ campaign,” he told ABC TV.
“But there were some areas that we couldn’t get people to.”
Steve McMurray, who was one of two ‘no’ campaigners standing at the end of a massive queue of voters at Docklands in Melbourne, said most people refused to take a flyer.
“Most people know what they’re going to do,” he told AAP.
The majority of people who spoke to AAP in Melbourne’s north said they were voting ‘yes’, with several voters in Kensington describing the decision as a “no-brainer”.
In Collingwood, 31-year-old doctor Jane McMahon said she spent six months working in the Northern Territory and saw the inequity in healthcare provided to Aboriginal people.
“I’m hoping that something like (a voice) will really improve their quality of life in a whole lot of areas,” she said.
Dr McMahon and other voters described debate over the voice referendum as disappointing, while Collingwood resident Oakley Germech, 26, said he decided to vote ‘yes’ after going back and forth for several months.
“Whether or not there’s an argument to be had for a sovereign ‘no’ vote, which we’ve seen in the media a lot, I can’t in good conscience put my name beside people like Peter Dutton who are voting ‘no’ for what I believe to be really racist and divisionary reasons,” Mr Germech said.
Voters faced a relatively quick wait to cast their ballots at many polling booths in Melbourne, while people waited in the Docklands queue for more than two hours.
Locals Kirstie Linge, 52, and Deborah Copsinis, 50, were shocked the library was the CBD’s only polling booth given a high density of residents in the area.
One voter said he thought casting his ‘no’ ballot would be convenient given he lived in Docklands, but he never imagined the about 400-metre line in his “wildest dreams”.
“I’m going home because I can’t do this. I’d rather pay the fine,” he said.
City of Melbourne deputy lord mayor Nicholas Reece said the queue was just as long at Southbank.
Melbourne’s was the only major CBD in the country without an Australian Electoral Commission polling booth despite warnings from the council and it having the biggest central population by a long way, Mr Reece said.
“This is unacceptable in a democracy, especially given we have compulsory voting,” he said.
Most people queuing at Docklands were patient and respectful through the day, campaigners said.
In Sydney, Bondi Beach voters cast their ballots in speedos, carrying surf boards and cricket bats on Saturday.
In Queensland, MP Bob Katter clashed with journalists and officials before casting his ‘no’ vote, while long queues also appeared at some polling booths.
By Cassandra Morgan in Melbourne
