Why I voted 'Yes'

I cast my vote today, and I voted 'Yes'. Anyone who knows me is aware that I grew up in a household full of political debates and disagreements. Despite the heated conversations, we all agreed that the decision to vote is a personal one, not to be casually shared. We respected the individual choices of each family member, understanding that each would likely have a unique political stance.

However, the significance of this political moment has led me to break from tradition and share my voting choice openly.

For me, a Yes vote boils down to a basic threshold question: what does enshrining a voice in the Constitution achieve relative to a purely legislated model?

If we accept that the Constitution should recognise Indigenous Australians – which both official campaigns do – then it makes little practical sense to focus energy on arguing that point. Making that a focus of campaign strategy is a political choice that panders to voters driven by divisive scare tactics.

The question is the value of a Voice enshrined in the Constitution. The Voice is not – as a defensive Yes campaign has at times framed it – "just another advisory body". It is special, and that's precisely the point:

1. Foundational Importance. The Constitution is the enabling document of our democracy. It is a sparse, technical document that lays out the foundational parameters of the institutions that inform how our nation operates. Adding "there shall be a body, to be called the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice" alongside its other proclamations like "There shall be a Federal Executive Council" and "There shall be an Inter-State Commission," says something about the value and prominence we ought to put on what the Voice will do. Its value is foundational to the operation of our democracy, which ought to listen to the people who live within it. Our old institutions simply were not built to listen to or consider Aboriginal people as part of our democracy. We need new ones.
2. Stability Over Time. Legislated models have, and will continue to, come and go based on the prevailing political mood of the moment. Politics – particularly the broken politics we experience today – shouldn't determine the parameters of our democracy itself. That's why we have a Constitution in the first place.
3. Adaptability. Enshrining a Voice in the Constitution changes the conversation about whether particular models are right or wrong. It means Parliament has to work at keeping it impactful and relevant and learn from particular choices about the first model we end up with, what works, what doesn't, and what might be done differently. Perhaps counterintuitively, enshrining it constitutionally enables it to operate within a system of failure, learning and improvement – which is seldom possible inside our democracy and is part of the reason that legislative models have not endured. Parliaments are fickle and reactive to the popular mood, but constitutional elements force a level of seriousness and deliberation that is often missing from standard legislative practices.

This kind of Constitutional change is not a cure-all, but it is a very good start.

As I cast my 'Yes' vote today, I couldn't help but think of the lively dinner table discussions of my youth. My family may not have always seen eye to eye politically, but there was one principle we all agreed on: the power and responsibility of the individual to participate in our democracy. I remember my parents emphasising that our votes are more than just ticks on a ballot; they are expressions of our collective will, shaping the kind of society we want to live in.

In a way, my decision to vote 'Yes' feels like a homage to those family debates. It's an active commitment to the democracy I was taught to cherish, even if it means breaking from the tradition of keeping my voting choices private. I am sharing my choice openly because I believe the 'Yes' vote is not just a vote for Indigenous recognition but a vote for a more inclusive, more thoughtful, and more just Australia—an Australia that I believe we can all be proud to call home. That's the legacy I hope to contribute to, and one day, it might just be the subject of another passionate family debate.