Race tightens for Indigenous Voice to Parliament: Newspoll

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Support for a referendum to enshrine an Indigenous Voice to Parliament has slumped to less than 50 per cent in the latest Newspoll released on Sunday night.

The exclusive poll of 1549 voters conducted between May 31 and June 3 for The Australian newspaper found only 46 per cent of voters wanted to secure constitutional approval for First Nations people.

Held only days after the passage of the Voice referendum legislation through the House of Representatives, the survey found 43 per cent would vote no, with the remaining 11 per cent undecided.

Presenting voters with the same wording they will be asked at the ballot box later this year, the Newspoll noted the distinct emergence of generational and geographic divisions.

Women voters, young voters and city-based university educated voters were leading the case for the Yes vote.

In contrast, men were marginally more likely to back the No vote, with over-50s and regional non-university educated voters providing the strongest opposition.

More specifically, 48 per cent of regional voters opposed the Voice with 42 per cent in favour.

But in metropolitan areas, 48 per cent approved of the proposed alteration with 40 per cent opposed.

Interestingly, voting intentions are split along party political lines, with 64 per cent of Coalition voters opposed and a similar proportion among supporters of Pauline Hanson’s One Nation.

By comparison about 63 per cent of Labor voters and 71 per cent of Greens voters are in favour of the Voice.

The poll also found Labor was retaining its two-party-preferred lead of 55-45 as support for the major parties remained unchanged.

The Greens gained one point to 12 per cent as One Nation fell a point to six per cent.

It also found Anthony Albanese leads Peter Dutton 55-28 as preferred prime minister.