Rita Panahi: The Yes campaign is cashed up and ready to grant thousands of dollars for community functions that support the Voice

The cashed-up Yes campaign has started playing dirty and it is only going to get worse as we approach the referendum.

It’s not over yet. The race-based referendum is floundering but it’s far from dead and buried.

All the polling shows the momentum is with the No vote but there is a cashed-up Yes campaign backed by corporates, sporting bodies, rich-listers and celebrities ready to bombard Australians with pro-Voice to Parliament propaganda.

The Yes camp started the campaign playing dirty and it is only going to get worse as we approach the referendum, to be held some time from September to November.

The Prime Minister sounds increasingly shrill as he implores Australians to rise to the occasion and back the Voice.

“People, I think, have to rise to the occasion … business has risen to the occasion, faith groups have risen to the occasion, the NRL, AFL, Cricket Australia, Tennis Australia and other sporting organisations have risen to the occasion,” Anthony Albanese said.

The Prime Minister sounds increasingly shrill as he implores Australians to rise to the occasion and back the Voice. Picture: Martin Ollman

But the only thing rising is the No vote. For the Yes vote to prevail it needs to achieve more than 50 per cent of the national vote as well as majorities in the majority of states. As it stands the intended Yes vote has plummeted to 43 per cent nationally with the No vote up four points to 47 per cent, according to the latest Newspoll.

As for the 10 per cent “undecided” I’d bet a pretty penny the bulk of this group is not so much undecided but a shy No vote. One can understand why some are reluctant to share their position given the hate campaign run by Voice advocates painting any dissent as bigoted.

The state-by-state data is just as compelling. If the referendum were held today only two states would be any chance of delivering a Yes majority, Victoria (Yes 48, No 41) and NSW (Yes 46, No 41).

Queensland (Yes 40, No 54), Western Australia (Yes 39, No 52), South Australia (Yes 45, No 56) and Tasmania (Yes 43, No 48) are currently in the No camp.

However, the “Yes 23” campaign is cashed up and ready to grant thousands of dollars for community functions that support the Voice.

And corporate giants ANZ, CBA, Westpac, NAB, Rio Tinto, BHP, Qantas, Transurban, Telstra, Coles, Wesfarmers and Woolworths will throw their considerable weight behind enshrining racial privilege in the Constitution.

This is a David and Goliath battle, but remember David won that fight.