Islanders go to the polls in historic independence vote 18/9/14
Islanders cast their votes in Scotland’s historic independence referendum today (Thurs).
Some 47 polling stations are located from the Butt to Barra and will be open between 7am and 10pm.
22,908 people are registered to vote in the Western Isles which is around 900 more than the electorate for the European elections in May.
Some 5,125 people have applied to vote by post -
The increase in the electorate reflects the scale of interest in the referendum.
Around 75% -
High demand for postal votes were anticipated in the Western Isles and postal slips
were mailed out in a series of pre-
If required, on voting day, postal votes can be dropped off at any polling station within the Western Isles or at the main council offices in Stornoway before 10pm.
443 islanders have asked for a proxy vote.
The first ballot box in the country to be collected is likely to be in in Stornoway with a polling station located in the Comahirle’s head office beside the counting centre in the Stornoway sports centre.
The Western Isles is also in the running to be the first of 32 regions in Scotland to declare the local result.
An announcement is expected between 1.30am to 2am in the early hours of Friday.
Though each side is entitled to request one recount in each area, the chief counting officer has said that, despite the outcome expected to be very close, recounts only should be granted if there is a flaw in the process.
There will be no national recount -
The Comhairle is chartering a plane to fly ballot boxes from Balivanich airport to Stornoway.
Contingency plans are in place with a ferry kept on standby though the count would then be delayed until all votes are counted.
At one point, the council was considering holding a ballot count in Benbecula for the votes cast in Uist and Barra. However, it later opted for a single count in Stornoway.