The number of Indigenous Australians enrolled to vote has dropped from record levels preceding the Voice referendum, as the AEC celebrates an expected all-time high ahead of the upcoming federal election.
Leading into October 14, eligible Indigenous enrolment statistics were estimated to sit at 94.1 per cent - the first time above 90 per cent and highest ever in national history.
According to latest data released on Tuesday, that number has decreased to 92.9 per cent.
Between the states at June 30 this year, Tasmania had the highest estimated Indigenous enrolment rate (97.2 per cent of the estimated 22,269 voting age people) with WA presenting the lowest (86.1 per cent of 79,403)
Graph credit: Dechlan Brennan
Still, pre-election enrolment of Indigenous Australians sits close to 14 percentage points ahead of the 2022 election - at 79.3% when last recorded in June 2021.
National enrolment statistics are updated quarterly, while Indigenous enrolment estimates occurred annually on June 30.
Representation of eligible Indigenous voters on the roll sat at just under 75 per cent in 2017, with gradual growth year to year before a near ten-point jump between December 2022 and pre-referendum.
The AEC states the numbers of self-identified Indigenous people are collated via data available from Services Australia, the Bureau of Statistics and the electoral role.
Nationally, as of June 30 2024, 97.9 of all eligible Australians are enrolled to vote.
This also sees a slight decrease since recent highs.
In March of this year, estimates sat at 98.2 per cent enrolment, 98.0 in December, 97.7 for the referendum and 97.2 at the end of the first quarter of 2023.
Australian Electoral Commissioner Tom Rogers said amongst strong projections overall, "we know for sure" First Nations pre-election representation is unprecedented.
"Australia's enrolment is in great shape. It's never been better leading into a federal election," he said.
"I am confident the next federal election will once again break enrolment records. It is likely to be the best base for participation in a federal election since federation.
"What we know for sure is that a greater proportion of young people and Indigenous Australians will be enrolled than ever before for a federal election – and by some margin as well."
Commissioner Rogers added: "A relatively flat year on year graph may look boring but this is a case of boring being good news – it shows that after recent years of explosive growth, Australia's estimated enrolment rates are holding steady. Historically, that hasn't happened".
"While we still have work to do to bring the enrolment of some groups of Australians to parity with the national rate, this year's numbers demonstrate that the high levels of enrolment between elections is being sustained," he said.
The AEC says fluctuation is a "natural part" of the election cycle, with a range of factors including "natural attrition", new voters and enrolment deadlines.
