Despite consensus in Indigenous communities, NT votes No

ABC NEWS (Australia)

Just an hour and a half after polls closed in the NT analysts were already calling an outcome for the Territory. Despite an overall result which mirrored the national consensus many Indigenous communities are shown to have voted in favour of the voice.

Transcript

00:00 One day on, both yes and no voters in the Territory reflect on a lengthy campaign.

00:07 Vote no is about the people coming together. Vote yes is saying, "Oh, the government can fix all of this for us."

00:15 The government can't fix anything to be honest with you.

00:18 And look towards the future.

00:20 We need to continue that work and we have to rebuild the Northern Territory.

00:25 I have spent four weeks saying to communities, "We must challenge the status quo."

00:31 As the counting stands now, 60% of Territorians chose to oppose the voice in yesterday's referendum.

00:38 Splitting the vote into the Territory's two federal electorates,

00:42 the Darwin Division of Solomon produced the bulk of the no vote,

00:45 with the rest of the Territory in Lingiari showing a higher but still not majority yes response.

00:52 In Darwin, the only yes majority polling stations were Rapid Creek and Parrap,

00:57 the highest no's stemming from the outer suburbs.

01:00 Most polling stations in Lingiari also voted no,

01:04 but out of the 22 mobile voting teams servicing remote Indigenous communities,

01:09 only one of them rejected a voice to Parliament.

01:12 Shadow Minister for Indigenous Affairs, Jacinta Nampajimpa-Price,

01:16 raised concerns about voting in the bush, saying remote communities can be easily influenced.

01:22 Those who come in with their how to votes, the unions that come in

01:26 and overpower vulnerable Aboriginal people in those communities,

01:30 there is a lot that goes on in remote communities that the rest of Australia doesn't get to see.

01:36 But spokesperson for the AEC told the ABC that the ability to campaign at any polling place,

01:42 including in remote communities, was of course the same for everyone,

01:46 and the Commission saw a 25% increase in polling in remote areas off the back of an expanded offering.

01:53 It's been an intense and tiring process for many,

01:56 but as the dust settles after the NT made its choice,

01:59 perhaps the pathway forward will become a little clearer.

02:02 little clearer.

02:04 [BLANK_AUDIO]

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