Australians are deeply divided over whether January 26 is an appropriate day to celebrate Australia Day – and we are no longer debating it as much as doubling down in entrenched camps.
Over the past five years, we have tracked attitudes on whether Australia Day should continue to be celebrated on January 26 through the Deakin Contemporary History Survey.
The most striking result from our late 2025 wave is not a shift in overall opinion, but a hardening of opposition to changing the date. While the balance between those who support and those who oppose change has remained stable, fewer Australians are sitting in the middle. This means more are expressing strong disagreement with changing the date of Australia Day.
