A new poll has revealed that most Aussies don’t want the Australia Day date to be changed, just days out from the national public holiday.
As protesters gear up for Invasion Day rallies across the nation on Monday, a survey of 1,050 voters by Freshwater Strategy published on Saturday, found 87 per cent of people believe it is important to have an annual day to celebrate Australia.
Within that, 57 per cent said it was ‘very important’ to have a celebration each year, while only 30 per cent said it was ‘somewhat important’.
The poll asked whether Australia Day should be on January 26 – which marks the arrival of the First Fleet in Sydney Harbour in 1788, when Governor Arthur Phillip raised the Union Jack at Sydney Cove.
For many Australians, particularly Indigenous and First Nations people, the day is seen as ‘Invasion Day’ or a ‘Day of Mourning’.
But more than two thirds (70 per cent) supported Australia Day being held on January 26, while just 12 per cent want the date changed.
Freshwater Strategy head of research Jordan Meyers said there was a lack of alternative dates and that Aussies were accustomed to celebrating the national public holiday in the third week of January.
‘It’s become ingrained into our culture,’ he told The Daily Telegraph.
A poll found 87 per cent of people believe it is important to have an annual day to celebrate Australia on January 26 (pictured, celebration on the Gold Coast in January 2025)
88 per cent of Aussies surveyed said that they are proud to be Australian
‘My whole life, it’s always been January 26 and there’s definitely a ritual and build-up around that amongst Australians. And I think people are very attached to that [date] fundamentally.’
Mr Meyers conceded that Australia Day evokes different sentiments for many Aussies.
‘The reality is that an overwhelming majority think that it is important that we have a national day and celebrate our country,’ he said.
‘I mean, you’ve got 88 per cent of people saying that they’re proud to be Australian.
‘That’s pretty clear across age and gender groups, and, you know, supporters of different parties as well.’
Just 11 per cent of those surveyed said they were not proud to be Australian.
The survey also found that most felt that being ‘truly Australian’ is defined by respect for national values (74 per cent) and laws (72 per cent).
Citizenship was only important to being ‘truly Australian’ for 57 per cent, while 55 per cent believed it meant contributing to the community.
For many Australians, particularly Indigenous and First Nations people, the day is seen as ‘Invasion Day’ or a ‘Day of Mourning’ (pictured, Invasion Day rally in Melbourne in 2025)
One third (33 per cent) said being born in Australia was important.
Mr Meyers said shared values included having a go and having a sense of humour, being down to earth, resilience, mateship and sportsmanship.
‘Fundamentally, people do value our freedom and the community spirit that it’s still very strong elements for Australians,’ he said.
‘We’re seeing well over 80 per cent of Australians are associating all these terms with Australia today and believe it represents who we are as a people.’
It comes as protesters gear up for Invasion Day rallies in major cities across the nation on Monday, calling for the national holiday to be scrapped or moved.
Despite NSW Police extending its protest ban another fortnight, hundreds are expected at Sydney’s Hyde Park for the annual protest, which opposes the national holiday marking the First Fleet’s arrival in 1788.
There has also been a renewed push to change the date of Australia Day, with more than 14,000 people backing a proposal.
The petition, launched by Indigenous-owned fashion label Clothing The Gap, calls for the creation of an ‘Australian Long Weekend’ by moving the holiday to the second-last Monday in January each year.
Under the proposal, the public holiday would always fall between January 18 and January 24 to ensure it does not coincide with January 26.
