It was John Howard that said, ‘In politics, it is better to be right than popular.’ In other words, people will reward politicians driven not by what is seemingly fashionable, but by conviction. This is, politicians who believe in, and unequivocally stand for, a principle.

The Voice referendum result is a lesson on many things, but it must also serve as a lesson to those on the centre-right of politics in this country on what can be achieved when you stand for a principle.

What more fundamental principle can there be in a liberal democracy than equality before the law?

This referendum result is what happens when you stand up for the guiding principles of your party, namely, to uphold and defend the Constitution.

This referendum result is what happens when you argue from a position of conviction.

This referendum result is what happens when you promote and encourage people of conviction to argue and defend fundamental principles, namely, fairness, equality, democracy, and freedom, principles that have underpinned Australia’s prosperity.

This country owes Warren Mundine and Jacinta Price a great debt. They are two individuals of immense courage who, despite some of the most disgraceful and vicious personal attacks ever seen, stood steadfast in defending these fundamental principles on behalf of millions of everyday Australians.

They stand in stark contrast to New South Wales Liberal leader Mark Speakman and Tasmanian Premier Jeremy Rockliffe, who foolishly thought they would ‘be on the right side of history’ if they went with the vibe. How wrong they were.

Mention must also be made here of WA Liberal leader Libby Mettam, and WA Nationals leaders Mia Davies, followed by Shane Love, who initially supported the Voice but changed their minds faster than you can say ‘bedwetters’ once the Aboriginal Cultural Heritage laws, probably one of the greatest attacks on private property rights in the history in this country, gave us a glimpse of what would happen if the Voice was successful.

After years of the Liberal Party, at both federal and state levels, vacating the field on the culture wars, the Voice referendum is the first culture war battle the centre-right has fought in earnest in recent years, and it was won by a massive margin.

This shows that defending and promoting fundamental values is popular with more Australians than it is not, and it appeals to millions of mainstream Australians whose values are no longer represented by the political class.

What was affirmed on Saturday was Australians’ wish to go forward together as one equal people, under one flag, with one destiny. No matter where you were born or how long you have been here, we all have the same rights and opportunities. This is a fundamental part of the great Australian success story.

The fact of the matter is that the referendum was resoundingly rejected by a substantial majority of Aboriginal people. It is also instructive that electorates with large migrant communities overwhelmingly voted ‘No’, many of those being Labor-held electorates.

This referendum was a shocking thing to put Australia through and must never be allowed to happen again, with Australians being called stupid and racist, and much more besides, and treated with such disdain.

However, it also represents an opportunity for those on the centre-right to take.

At an IPA event in Perth on the Voice back in August, Tony Abbott told us that we should vote ‘no’ not only to the Voice, but to destructive climate change policies, virus hysteria and woke education, among other things.

Let’s hope that on those issues, the centre-right in this country will heed the lessons of the Voice referendum and decide it is better to argue for what is right, rather than what is seemingly popular.