Australian Republican Movement chairman Geoff Gallop admits pushing the cause is hard work.
On current figures, a third of Australians want an Australian head of state, a third favour the current system, and the rest remain to be convinced either way.
Mr Gallop welcomed the latest intervention by Opposition Leader Bill Shorten who used a speech on the eve of Australia Day to urge Australians to breath new life into the dream of an Australian head of state.
But there just isn't the kind of support for a republic that there was at the time of the 1999 referendum, he said.
Mr Gallop said it was tough work - although he believed more Australians wanted a republic than didn't.
"It's hard work for us republicans - there's no doubt about that," he told ABC radio.
"There is no doubt that the failure of the referendum in 1999 set the campaign back."
Mr Gallop said the Australian constitution wasn't truly independent, with the head of state determined by hereditary processes that have emerged from the history of another country.
"The great unifying thing to do would be say let's have a proper process, have a democratic engagement and determine a model for the future. Those of us who believe have just go to keep their advocacy up," he said.
"At each step we go forward in this way, our confidence lifts up and we are better as a nation."
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