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As an additional question in the 1977 referendum, the voters were polled on which song they would prefer to be used to mark occasions where a particularly Australian national identity was desired. Voting on this question was not compulsory. According to the AEC Electoral Pocketbook, this was one of only three plebiscites to be held in Australia - the previous two had been regarding military service in 1916 and 1917.
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Results
Against the background that ‘GOD SAVE THE QUEEN’ is the NATIONAL ANTHEM to be played on Regal and Vice Regal occasions, electors may indicate their preferences as to which of the tunes of the songs listed below they would prefer to be played on other occasions.
| State | On rolls | Ballots issued | God Save the Queen | Advance Australia Fair | Song of Australia | Waltzing Matilda | Informal | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number | % | Number | % | Number | % | Number | % | ||||
| NSW | 3,007,511 | 2,537,805 | 348,885 | 15.32 | 1,169,421 | 51.35 | 121,456 | 5.33 | 637,795 | 28.00 | 260,248 |
| Vic. | 2,252,831 | 1,951,160 | 352,603 | 20.68 | 683,451 | 40.09 | 110,591 | 6.49 | 557,991 | 32.73 | 246,524 |
| Qld | 1,241,426 | 1,056,804 | 204,453 | 21.38 | 438,929 | 45.90 | 61,234 | 6.40 | 251,609 | 26.31 | 100,579 |
| SA | 799,243 | 706,392 | 114,477 | 18.07 | 152,507 | 24.07 | 215,085 | 33.95 | 151,434 | 23.90 | 72,889 |
| WA | 682,291 | 487,879 | 113,054 | 23.17 | 183,159 | 37.54 | 75,524 | 15.48 | 116,142 | 23.81 | 68,394 |
| Tas. | 259,081 | 253,525 | 47,346 | 22.38 | 88,825 | 41.98 | 21,091 | 9.97 | 54,329 | 25.68 | 23,934 |
| ACT | 120,875 | 22,136 | 1,448 | 6.65 | 7,857 | 36.11 | 1,863 | 8.56 | 10,593 | 48.68 | 375 |
| NT | 38,209 | 2,951 | 423 | 14.93 | 1,143 | 40.35 | 413 | 14.58 | 854 | 30.14 | 118 |
| Total | 8,401,467 | 7,069,046 | 1,182,689 | 18.78 % | 2,725,292 | 43.29 % | 607,257 | 9.65 % | 1,780,747 | 28.28 % | 773,061 |
Discussion
Prior to 1974 God Save the Queen was Australia's national anthem.
In 1974 the Whitlam government performed a nationwide opinion survey, conducted through the Australian Bureau of Statistics, to determine the song to be sung on occasions of national significance. Advance Australia Fair was chosen and was enshrined as the national song, to be used on all occasions excepting those of a specifically regal nature.
In January 1976 the Fraser government reinstated God Save the Queen for royal, vice-regal, defence, and loyal toast occasions, and made plans to conduct a national poll to find a song for use on ceremonial occasions when it was desired to mark a separate Australian identity.
References
- "Plebiscite results 1977". Parliamentary Handbook of the Commonwealth of Australia for the 42nd Parliament: Referendums and Plebiscites. Commonwealth of Australia: Parliamentary Library (2003-06-10). Retrieved on 2008-08-11.
- note the web page appears to be in error regarding Western Australian ballots issued: it could not have been 235,525 - the same number as ballots issued in Tasmania.
- Electoral Pocketbook (includes 2004 federal election results) (June 2005) Media and Communication Section. Australian Electoral Commission. Kingston, ACT. ISBN 0-9752279-7-1
See also
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