"Referendums have been held in Australia to approve parliament proposed
changes to the
Constitution of Australia or to the constitutions of states and
territories.
Polls
conducted on non-constitutional issues are sometimes but not always referred
to as plebiscites. Not all federal referendums have been on
constitutional matters (such as the 1916 Australian conscription
referendum), and state votes that likewise do not affect the constitution
are frequently said to be referendums (such as the 2009 Western Australian
daylight saving referendum). Historically, they are used by Australians
interchangeably and a plebiscite was considered another name for a
referendum.
Voting
in a referendum is compulsory for those on the electoral roll.
As of
2020, 44 nationwide referendums have been held, only eight of which have
been carried. However, there have only been 19 times the Australian people
have gone to the polls to vote on constitutional amendments, as it is common
to have multiple questions on the ballot. There have also been three
nationwide plebiscites (two on conscription and one on the national song),
and one postal survey (on same-sex marriage).
Australians have rejected most proposals for constitutional amendments,
approving only 8 out of 44 referendums submitted to them since federation.
Noting the difficulty of the referendum process, then Prime Minister Robert
Menzies said in 1951, "The truth of the matter is that to get an
affirmative vote from the Australian people on a referendum proposal is one
of the labours of Hercules."