IT’S A YES! Australians have voted in favour of legalising same-sex marriage, saying "yes" to the historic social change by a substantial margin of 61.6 per cent to 38.4 per cent.
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After years of political stagnation, the public has now tasked the Turnbull government with changing the law before Christmas to allow same-sex couples to marry.
Almost 80 per cent of eligible voters participated in the unprecedented voluntary postal survey, giving the verdict an authority unmatched by most elections globally.
How we voted:
Read more:
EARLIER: The results of the same sex marriage survey will be returned at 10am when they are announced by the Australian Bureau of Statistics. We'll be bringing you all the reaction and details from towns in central and western NSW in our live blog below.
Journalists in Dubbo, Orange, Bathurst, Mudgee, Cowra, Lithgow, Young, Parkes and Forbes will be speaking with community members to find out their reaction following the postal vote findings.
We will also be looking at the distribution of votes in our electorates, to determine how people voted locally towards the final result.
Already a group of senators has moved to ensure legislation – authored by Dean Smith – will be debated as soon as Thursday, with the goal of legalising same-sex marriage by Christmas.
Follow our live blog below for updates around the region all day.
What we know so far:
- The results will be returned at 10am today.
- This is what will happen next.
- Turnbull ministers reject Liberal's alternative same-sex marriage bill