1951 Australian referendum 22 September 1951 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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Do you approve of the proposed law for the alteration of the Constitution entitled 'Constitution Alteration (Powers to deal with Communists and Communism) 1951'? | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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Note: Saturation of colour denotes strength of vote |
The 1951 Australian Referendum was held on 22 September, 1951, and sought approval for the federal government to ban the Communist Party of Australia. It was not carried.
The Communist Party of Australia (CPA) was founded in 1920 and dissolved in 1991. The CPA achieved its greatest political strength in the 1940s and faced an attempted ban in 1951. Though it never presented a major challenge to the established order in Australia, it did have significant influence on the trade unions, social movements, and the national culture.
In 1951, the Menzies government passed a law banning the Communist Party of Australia. The party challenged the law in the High Court, which ruled that it was constitutionally invalid. Following this defeat, the government sponsored this referendum in an attempt to overcome this constitutional obstacle. The referendum question was opposed, not surprisingly, by the Communist Party. It was also opposed by the Australian Labor Party and even the Young Liberals, on the grounds that it would restrict freedoms of speech and association.
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The High Court of Australia is the supreme court in the Australian court hierarchy and the final court of appeal in Australia. It has both original and appellate jurisdiction, the power of judicial review over laws passed by the Parliament of Australia and the parliaments of the states, and the ability to interpret the Constitution of Australia and thereby shape the development of federalism in Australia.
Australian Communist Party v The Commonwealth, also known as the Communist Party Case, was a legal case in the High Court of Australia described as "undoubtedly one of the High Court's most important decisions."
Do you approve of the proposed law for the alteration of the Constitution entitled 'Constitution Alteration (Powers to deal with Communists and Communism) 1951'?
State | On rolls | Ballots issued | For | Against | Invalid | ||
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% | % | ||||||
New South Wales | 1,944,219 | 1,861,147 | 865,838 | 47.17% | 969,868 | 52.83% | 25,441 |
Victoria | 1,393,556 | 1,326,024 | 636,819 | 48.71% | 670,513 | 51.29% | 18,692 |
Queensland | 709,328 | 675,916 | 373,156 | 55.76% | 296,019 | 44.24% | 6,741 |
South Australia | 442,983 | 427,253 | 198,971 | 47.29% | 221,763 | 52.71% | 6,519 |
Western Australia | 319,383 | 305,653 | 164,989 | 55.09% | 134,497 | 44.91% | 6,167 |
Tasmania | 164,868 | 158,596 | 78,154 | 50.26% | 77,349 | 49.74% | 3,093 |
Armed Forces* | 9,472 | 6,478 | 2,917 | 82 | |||
Total for Commonwealth | 4,974,337 | 4,754,589 | 2,317,927 | 49.44% | 2,370,009 | 50.56% | 66,653 |
Obtained majority in three States and an overall minority of 52 082 votes. | |||||||
Not carried |
* Armed forces totals are also included in their respective states.
Source: Australian Parliament - Referendum results. [1]
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