under this power because communists presented a real threat to Australian security, as revolution was a central theme of Marxist doctrine. On 19 March 1951, the Court ruled in a 6:1 judgement (Latham CJ dissenting) that the Act was invalid. In his judgement, Fullagar J summarised the position of the bench thus, The validity of a law or of an administrative act done under a law cannot be made to depend on the opinion of the law-maker, or the person who is to do the act, that the law or the consequence of the act is within the constitutional power upon which the law in question itself depends for its validity. A power to make laws with respect to lighthouses does not authorize the making of a law with respect to anything which is, in the opinion of the law-maker, a lighthouse. A power to make a proclamation carrying legal consequences with respect to a lighthouse is one thing: a power to make a similar proclamation with respect to anything which in the opinion of the Governor-General is a lighthouse is another thing. Referendum A referendum was called on 23 August 1951, which sought to insert a clause into the constitution that empowered the Federal Parliament make laws in reference to communism and communists. Newspaper editorials were overwhelmingly in favour of the ban with 12 editorials in support, two papers not taking a stance (Daily Mirror and Daily News), and just one newspaper against it (The Argus). The Labor party had decided to campaign for a "No" vote despite supporting the Bill through the senate the previous year. Opposition Leader HV Evatt held more speeches than Menzies and started campaigning earlier, campaigning vigorously against what he perceived as Menzies' attempt to establish a police state in Australia. Menzies' speeches were often interrupted by the "No" campaign's hecklers, although Menzies claimed to have been happy with the uproar because it demonstrated the communists' "disrespect for liberal norms". Some Liberal party members and non-affiliated conservatives also supported the "No" campaign, which undermined Menzies efforts to convince the public that this was a necessary measure. Despite this, three months before the ballot, the ban was supported by 73.3% percent of respondents in a Gallup Poll. The reason behind the Gallup support plummeting for "Yes" has been estimated to have been especially middle class Liberal voters slipping away from the Coalition position, whereas Labor