The Northern Territory has strongly rejected an Indigenous voice in the constitution, with almost two-thirds of residents voting 'no'.
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The opposition's Indigenous Australians spokeswoman and NT senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price spearheaded the 'no' campaign.
The Indigenous senator argued the voice would divide Australians down the lines of race and not lead to practical outcomes on the ground in rural and remote communities like Alice Springs.
"For those of you that voted 'yes', please know that we as a coalition have always got the best interests of all Australians at heart," she told the nation from Brisbane after the referendum failed.
"The Australian people want practical outcomes, a unified country where we can move forward together."
Senator Price said work needed to be done to bring the nation together at such "a challenging and heart-wrenching time".
"Going forward we need to prioritise where our most marginalised are," she said.
"The gap doesn't exist between Indigenous Australia and non-Indigenous Australia, it exists between our most marginalised who we know ... live in remote communities."
The electorate of Lingiari, which spans 99.99 per cent of the NT's landmass, is held by Labor MP Marion Scrymgour who said a lot of Aboriginal Australians had voted for change.
However 63 per cent of them voted 'no'.
While it wasn't the result the government wanted, they needed to move forward and try to change the status quo, which isn't working for Indigenous Australians, she said.
"All of those young Indigenous people, for our families, our communities, they need us to continue that fight," Ms Scrymgour told Sky News.
"A national voice has been defeated, we need to have a look at what we need to do for the Northern Territory."
She said she was still hoping to see a strong 'yes' showing in the bush as results continued to come in and remote voting numbers trickled through.
Almost a third of the NT's population is Indigenous.
"That will reaffirm that we've got to do something, we can't keep the status quo going," Ms Scrymgour said.
Senator Price said there needed to be a renewal in how Indigenous policy was approached.
"It is time to apply more accountability to those who are responsible for the lives of our most marginalised," she said.
This meant rejecting the voices of "academics and activists from the inner cities who think that they know better for Indigenous Australians, particularly in remote communities," she said.
Just under 65 per cent of voters in the second NT seat, Solomon, sided with the 'no' case.
Australian Associated Press
