Scots held the fate of the UK in their hands yesterday as they voted in a referendum on becoming an independent state, deciding whether to unravel a marriage with England that built an empire, but has increasingly been felt by many Scots as stifling and one-sided.
The question on the ballot paper is simplicity itself: “Should Scotland be an independent country?”
Yet it has divided Scots during months of campaigning, and polls suggest the result is too close to call. A final Ipsos MORI poll released yesterday put support for the No side at 53 percent and Yes at 47 percent.
Photo: AFP
The telephone survey of 991 people has a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.
The future of the 307-year old union with England will be decided in 15 hours; polls were to close at 10pm (5am Taipei time). Turnout is expected to be high, with more than 4.2 million people registered to vote — 97 percent of those eligible.
On a foggy morning in Scotland’s capital, Edinburgh, voters lined up outside some polling stations even before they opened at 7am.
Photo: AFP
The campaign has generated an unprecedented volume and intensity of public debate and participation. The Yes side, in particular, has energized young people and previously disillusioned working-class voters.
As polls opened, the mood was electric, tinged by nervousness.
For some voters, this was a day they had dreamed of for decades.
“Fifty years I fought for this,” said Isabelle Smith, a Yes supporter in Edinburgh’s maritime district of Newhaven, a former fishing port. “And we are going to win. I can feel it in my bones.”
For Smith, who went to the polling station decked out in a blue-and-white pro-independence shirt and rosette, statehood for Scotland was a dream nurtured during three decades living in the US with her late husband.
“The one thing America has that the Scots don’t have is confidence,” said Smith, who returned to Scotland years ago. “But they’re getting it, they’re walking tall.”
“No matter what, Scotland will never, ever be the same again,” the 83-year-old Smith said.
Smith’s three children and seven grandchildren are all Americans, and several flew to Scotland for the referendum to support her.
Many opponents of independence agreed that the campaign had reinvigorated Scottish democracy.
“I support the No side, but it’s been a fascinating, worthwhile discussion about Scotland’s future,” writing consultant David Clarke said. “If it’s a No it’s a win-win situation. If it’s a Yes, we will have to deal with the fact that it’s a Yes.”
Scottish First Minister Alex Salmond, leader of the independence campaign, cast his vote near his home in northeastern Scotland. If the Yes side prevails he will realize a long-held dream of leading his country to independence after an alliance with England formed in 1707.
Pro-independence forces got a last-minute boost from tennis star Andy Murray, who signaled his support of the Yes campaign in a tweet to his 2.7 million followers early yesterday.
Anti-independence leaders, including former British prime minister Gordon Brown, have implored Scots not to break their links with the rest of the UK.
Once the polls close, ballot boxes will be transported to 32 regional centers for counting. The result is anticipated later today.
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