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Catalan election: high turnout expected in de facto independence referendum
Source: The Guardian
Catalan election: high turnout expected in de facto independence referendum
Ashifa Kassam in Barcelona
Sunday 27 September 2015 14.39 BST
Voter turnout in the de facto referendum on Catalan independence was expected to reach record highs on Sunday as people across the region queued to cast their ballot in an election billed as the most important in the region’s history.
By midday, authorities said nearly 35% of eligible voters had already cast their ballot, a rise of five percentage points on the same period in the 2012 elections. Meritxell Borràs, the top electoral official for the regional government, attributed the rise in participation to the significance of these elections.
“It’s very positive. These are very important elections and the citizens are demonstrating this by heading out to vote in a major way,” she said.
The Catalan president, Artur Mas, described the vote itself as a victory for the region. “Today there will be a plebiscite on the future of Catalonia,” he said as he cast his vote. “We overcome all the obstacles that the Spanish state put up … Democracy has won in Catalonia, Spain, Europe and the world.”
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Ashifa Kassam in Barcelona
Sunday 27 September 2015 14.39 BST
Voter turnout in the de facto referendum on Catalan independence was expected to reach record highs on Sunday as people across the region queued to cast their ballot in an election billed as the most important in the region’s history.
By midday, authorities said nearly 35% of eligible voters had already cast their ballot, a rise of five percentage points on the same period in the 2012 elections. Meritxell Borràs, the top electoral official for the regional government, attributed the rise in participation to the significance of these elections.
“It’s very positive. These are very important elections and the citizens are demonstrating this by heading out to vote in a major way,” she said.
The Catalan president, Artur Mas, described the vote itself as a victory for the region. “Today there will be a plebiscite on the future of Catalonia,” he said as he cast his vote. “We overcome all the obstacles that the Spanish state put up … Democracy has won in Catalonia, Spain, Europe and the world.”
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Read more: http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/sep/27/catalan-election-high-turnout-independence-referendum