Why did Australia vote No in the Voice referendum?

I’m in Sydney for the Voice referendum result – and it’s already over. No has won, by what looks to be a 60/40 margin. So an ‘Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice’ will not be added to Australia’s democratic apparatus after an Aboriginal-led campaign asking Australians to reject identity politics. The results had heavy overtones of Brexit: affluent cities voting Yes and the left-behind areas voting No. The Northern Territory, which has the highest concentration of aboriginal Australians, looks to have rejected the proposal by 65/35. Aussies have voted to protect the principle of everyone being equal before the law and in parliament.

It’s hard to describe what the campaign has been like here. Corporates embraced Yes and advised their staff to vote accordingly (some have offered a day off work on Monday, to mourn the result). Sydney is draped in Yes flags put on flagpoles by the city authorities. I spent results night with a friend whose daughter had been given a Yes badge by her school to wear in class.