Photo courtesy of ABC Australia.
Summary: The majority of Australians voted to legalize same-sex marriage.
After a two-month national postal survey was circulated in Australia, the results reveal that the country is “overwhelmingly” in favor of legalizing same-sex marriage.
On Wednesday, the Australian Bureau of Statistics revealed that 61% of voters wanted same-sex marriage to be legalized and 38% were against it. Almost 13 million people participated in the mail-in survey, which is 79.5% of the country.
Following the announcement, celebrations broke out amongst the country, CNN reported. In Melbourne, for instance, hundreds of people gathered to throw confetti and cheer.
Australia Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull called for same-sex marriage to be legalized before Christmas.
“They voted ‘yes’ for fairness, they voted ‘yes’ for commitment, they voted ‘yes’ for love. And now it is up to us here in the Parliament of Australia to get on with it,” Turnbull said.
The postal vote was released after months of divisive debate, and the ballot was non-binding and voluntary. After the results were released, a bill to legalize same-sex marriage was introduced into the Senate and will be debated for amendments, according to The BBC.
The BBC stated that before today, Australians who were pro-same-sex marriage were at odds with those against it and that the postal ballot’s result will only mean more debates.
“For the Yes campaign that means pressing the government to stick to its pledge of passing the law,” BBC wrote. “For the No campaign, it means lobbying over the wording of that legislation, and arguing for legal protection for those who continue to oppose gay marriage. While today will see parties in the streets and rainbow flags flying high, both sides know their battle is far from over.”
Qantas chief executive Alan Joyce, a prominent same-sex marriage supporter, told a crowd in Sydney that he was happy with today’s result.
“This is an amazing outcome and we should all be very proud of this amazing country,” Joyce said.
Opponents of same-sex marriage hope that Australia’s new law will not interfere with businesses’ desires to not serve same-sex couples. Prominent No campaigner Lyle Shelton wrote on Facebook said that he would support a bill that protected children from radical LGBTIQ education.
“We will now do what we can to guard against restrictions on freedom of speech and freedom of religion, to defend parents’ rights, and to protect Australian kids from being exposed to radical LGBTIQ sex and gender education in the classrooms,” Shelton said.
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