Australians rejected giving Indigenous people constitutional recognition and greater rights in a landmark referendum today, Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles has said.
"Australians have not voted for a change to the constitution," Mr Marles said, as partial results pointed to a resounding defeat for the reform.
"We very much respect this result."
Millions of Australians voted in the referendum on recognition and rights for Indigenous citizens - with a string of polls pointing to defeat.
More than 230 years since the first British penal ships anchored in Sydney, a vote that was supposed to take a step towards reconciliation has instead exposed a gulf between First Nations people and the white majority.
Almost 18 million Australians voted on changes that would have acknowledged Indigenous peoples in the constitution for the first time and would have created an advisory body - a so-called "Voice" - to weigh laws that affect those communities.
Australia's First Nations peoples have lived on the continent for more than 60,000 years.
For Indigenous peoples, the arrival of British colonialists heralded a period of violent subjugation, forced assimilation and enduring deprivation.
Today, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people make up less than four percent of the population, but are much more likely to be sick, imprisoned or to die young than their wealthier white compatriots.
"Yes" vote supporters argued the reforms would help fix those persistent inequalities by engaging Indigenous people in crafting policies that affect their communities.
But opinion polls gave the referendum little hope of passing, with recent surveys indicating the "yes" camp polling at just over 40% and the "no" side at nearly 60%.
Polls have consistently shown that Indigenous issues rank low on any list of public priorities for most Australians, far behind concerns like the rising cost of living.
But hard questions are already being asked about what a "no" vote would say about Australia, and Australians.
The opposition campaign has been successful in channelling fears about the role and effectiveness of the "Voice" assembly, encouraging voters to vote "no" if they are uncertain.
Centre-left Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has spent a year and much precious political capital advocating for the "yes" campaign.
On the day of the referendum he made an emotional plea to voters, asking them to right a historical wrong.
"This week of all weeks, with so much hatred displayed in the world, this is an opportunity for Australians to show kindness," he said.
"This is about respect for Indigenous Australians. It's about how we see ourselves as a nation, but it's also about the way that the world sees us."
A "yes" victory, he said, would mean a "burden lifted from all of us".
"In my lifetime Indigenous Australians were not counted. Now they're asking to be heard. It's not too much to ask."
Voting is compulsory for Australia's 17.5 million voters.
The referendum can only pass with support from a majority of voters nationally and a majority of voters in at least four of the country's six states.
The ballot paper asked: "A Proposed Law: to alter the Constitution to recognise the First Peoples of Australia by establishing an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice. Do you approve this proposed alteration?"
