Summary
Rectangular How to Vote Card issued by the Australian Labor Party, for the Referendums held on Saturday 27 May 1967.
The first referendum question was an attempt to alter the balance of numbers in the Senate and the House of Representatives which was defeated. The second question was to determine whether two references in the Australian Constitution, which discriminated against Aboriginal people, should be removed and this question succeeded in the highest ever 'yes' vote in an Australian referendum.
The sections of the Constitution under scrutiny were:
51. The Parliament shall, subject to this Constitution, have power to make laws for the peace, order, and good government of the Commonwealth with respect to:-
(xxvi) The people of any race, other than the aboriginal people in any State, for whom it is necessary to make special laws.
127. In reckoning the numbers of the people of the Commonwealth, or of a State or other part of the Commonwealth, aboriginal natives should not be counted.
The majority of parliamentarians supported the second proposed amendment, a NO case was never formulated for presentation as part of the referendum campaign.
Physical Description
Rectangular white paper with black print.
Significance
The significance of this 'How to Vote Card' lies in its association with the referendum held on 27 May 1967 when 90.77% of Australian voters recorded the largest ever 'Yes' vote in a referendum to alter the Australian constitution which finally enabled Aboriginal people to be counted in the national census and to be subject to Commonwealth laws, rather than just state laws.
More Information
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Collecting Areas
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Acquisition Information
Purchase
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Printer
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Issued By
Australian Labour Party, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia, 1967
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Organiser of Event
Commonwealth of Australia, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia, 1967
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Inscriptions
Australian Labor Party/ Write YES in the box provided opposite BOTH questions:/ Do you approve the proposed law for the alteration of the Constitution entitled/ "An Act to alter the Constitution so that the Number of Members of the House of Representatives may be increased without necessarily increasing the number of Senators?"/ YES/ Do you approve the proposed law for the alteration of the Constitution entitled 'An Act to alter the Constitution so as to omit certain words relating to the People of the Aboriginal Race in any State and so that Aboriginals are to be counted in reckoning the Population?"/Yes/ Printed by J.L. Parker, 59 Regent St, Sydney, Authorised by Cyril S. Wyndham for the Australian Labor Party, 59 Ainslie Ave., Canberra, ACT.
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Classification
Politics & public protest, Indigenous rights, Promotional materials
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Category
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Discipline
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Type of item
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Overall Dimensions
102 mm (Width), 97 mm (Height)
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Keywords
