In latest poll 64% of those who say they have voted report endorsing same-sex marriage, plus Labor maintains overall lead

This article is more than 2 years old

This article is more than 2 years old

Australia appears on track for a yes vote in the same-sex marriage postal survey when results are reported next week, according to the latest Guardian Essential poll, where 64% of people who have voted say they’ve cast a yes ballot.

With the survey closing on Tuesday, the new poll of 1,792 voters shows 86% of the sample reporting they have voted – up 11% in a fortnight.

More voters over the age of 55 say they have voted in the survey (94%) than people under the age of 35 (80%).

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Of the people who have already voted, 64% report voting yes (up 4% from two weeks ago) and 31% no (down 3%) – with 5% declining to answer. Groups most likely to have voted yes are Greens voters (92%), Labor voters (79%), those aged 18-34 (77%) and women (69%).

While the Turnbull government has promised consideration of a private member’s bill to legalise same-sex marriage before year’s end if there’s a yes vote, the government has recently rejected a proposed Indigenous voice to parliament on the basis it would have no realistic chance of getting past a referendum. But the new poll suggests more Australians support that concept than oppose it.

Just under half the sample, 45%, said they would support an Indigenous voice to parliament, with 16% opposed. Support for this measure was greatest among Greens voters (67% support), ALP voters (61%) and those aged 18-34 (56%).

Among Coalition voters, 37% supported and 24% opposed the voice to parliament.

Negotiating a treaty had 47% support and 16% opposition. Creating a treaty commission had 41% support and 19% opposition, and creating a truth and reconciliation commission had 43% support and 18% opposition.

The latest poll has Labor continuing with an election-winning lead over the Coalition on the two-party preferred measure, ahead 53% to the Coalition’s 47%.

The Turnbull government has endured a shocking political fortnight, with the employment minister, Michaelia Cash, losing a staff member who tipped off the media about a police raid on the Australian Workers Union, and the government’s citizenship woes persisting on new fronts.

After ruling out an audit of MPs to determine their eligibility to sit in parliament last week, Malcolm Turnbull on Monday said all MPs and senators would have to lodge declarations and produce evidence that they were not foreign citizens at the time of their nomination.

The citizenship crisis has the potential to cost the Coalition government. The government is already fighting one byelection, in the seat of New England, and concerns were raised over another government MP, John Alexander, late on Monday.

Turnbull will join Barnaby Joyce on the hustings in New England on Tuesday after another independent candidate, Pete Mailler, a 46-year-old cattle and grain producer from Boggabilla, joined the contest on Monday.

Voters in the latest Guardian Essential poll were also asked a number of questions about the attributes of the major parties.

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The Liberal party’s main attributes, according to poll participants, were – divided (68%), will promise anything to win votes (67%), out of touch with ordinary people (66%) and too close to the big corporate and financial interest (65%).

Since these questions were asked in June last year, the main changes were divided (up 17%), moderate (up 6%) and clear about what they stand for (down 6%).

The Labor party’s main attributes were: will promise anything to win votes (69%), looks after the interests of working people (58%), moderate (52%) and out of touch with ordinary people (52%).

Since this question was last asked, the main changes have been – extreme (up 11%), too close to the big corporate and financial interests (up 7%) and out of touch with ordinary people (up 6%).