2014 Scottish independence referendum

2014 Scottish independence referendum

18 September 2014 (2014-09-18)

Should Scotland be an independent country?
Results
Choice
Votes %
Yes 1,617,989 44.70%
No 2,001,926 55.30%
Valid votes 3,619,915 99.91%
Invalid or blank votes 3,429 0.09%
Total votes 3,623,344 100.00%
Registered voters/turnout 4,283,392 84.59%

Results by local voting area
No:      50–52.5%      52.5–55%      55-57.5%      57.5-60%      60–62.5%      62.5–65%      65-67.5%
Yes:      50–52.5%      52.5–55%%      55-57.5%

A referendum on Scottish independence from the United Kingdom was held in Scotland on 18 September 2014.[1] The referendum question was "Should Scotland be an independent country?", which voters answered with "Yes" or "No".[2] The "No" side won with 2,001,926 (55.3%) voting against independence and 1,617,989 (44.7%) voting in favour. The turnout of 84.6% was the highest recorded for an election or referendum in the United Kingdom since the January 1910 general election, which was held before the introduction of universal suffrage.

The Scottish Independence Referendum Act 2013 set out the arrangements for the referendum and was passed by the Scottish Parliament in November 2013, following an agreement between the devolved Scottish government and the Government of the United Kingdom. The independence proposal required a simple majority to pass. All European Union (EU) or Commonwealth citizens residing in Scotland age 16 or over could vote, with some exceptions, which produced a total electorate of almost 4,300,000 people. This was the first time that the electoral franchise was extended to include 16- and 17-year-olds in Scotland.

Yes Scotland was the main campaign group for independence, while Better Together was the main campaign group in favour of maintaining the union. Many other campaign groups, political parties, businesses, newspapers, and prominent individuals were also involved. Prominent issues raised during the referendum included what currency an independent Scotland would use, public expenditure, EU membership, and North Sea oil. An exit poll revealed that retention of the pound sterling was the deciding factor for those who voted No, while "disaffection with Westminster politics" was the deciding factor for those who voted Yes.[3]

  1. ^ "Scottish independence: Referendum to be held on 18 September, 2014". BBC News. BBC. 21 March 2013. Retrieved 13 March 2018.
  2. ^ "Scottish independence referendum – GOV.UK". gov.uk. Retrieved 1 December 2015.
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference AshcroftExitPoll was invoked but never defined (see the help page).