Australians will head to the polls for the first referendum in nearly 25 years on October 14 but pre-polling booths are already opening.
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PRE-POLL:
* Early voting opened in the Northern Territory, Tasmania, Victoria and Western Australia on Monday
* Early voting opens in NSW, the ACT, Queensland and South Australia on Tuesday (Monday is a public holiday).
'YES' CAMP:
* Yes23 campaign director Dean Parkin was on the hustings in Melbourne
* Prime Minister Anthony Albanese addressed reporters in Melbourne before travelling to Hobart to meet with Indigenous Australians Minister Linda Burney, Tasmanian MPs and Yes23 campaigners
* The key message is voting 'yes' will give Indigenous people a say in matters that affect them and not impact the lives of most Australians or veto government decisions
'NO' CAMP:
* Opposition Indigenous Australians Minister Jacinta Nampijinpa Price was in Perth
* The Indigenous senator and Opposition Leader Peter Dutton travelled around regional NSW in the week leading up to pre-poll opening
* The key message is putting the advisory body in the constitution means it will be permanent if something goes wrong and will divide the nation by race
AUSTRALIAN ELECTORAL COMMISSION:
* 97.7 per cent of eligible Australians are enrolled to vote, a 447,000-person increase from the 2022 federal election
* There's a record-high 94.1 per cent Indigenous enrolment, up from 74.7 per cent in 2017
* 91.4 per cent of 18 to 24-year-olds are enrolled
* More than 60 teams have loaded 4WDs, helicopters and planes to visit some of the smallest and most remote communities to enable them to cast their ballots
Australian Associated Press
