Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced that Australians will decide the fate of a constitutionally enshrined Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice to Parliament on October 14.
Albanese officially set the date during a visit to Adelaide, sending the nation to the polls for the first referendum since 1999.
The vote will determine whether the Voice, a body providing advice to government on issues particularly impacting Indigenous people, will be enshrined in the constitution.
Albanese has compared the upcoming referendum to previous changes to the Australian constitution.
“For all of us, it is now a sprint and across the finish line is a more unified, more reconciled Australia, with greater opportunities for all,” he said.
“The idea for a Voice came from the people and it will be decided by the people,” Albanese added.
“On that day, every Australian will have a once in a generation chance to bring our country together and to change it for the better.”
For the referendum to be successful, it will need support from a majority of Australians across the whole country and a majority of voters in at least four states.
The referendum is likely to be the biggest electoral event in Australia’s history with an extra 60,000 First Nations Australians joining the voter roll.