By Seyi Gesinde with agency report
• PM Cameron vows change
• Alex Salmond concedes
• 54% vote to stay; 46% to leave
• Scottish voter turnout at 86%
Scotland will remain part of the United Kingdom along with England, Wales and Northern Ireland, following a historic referendum vote.
A majority of voters rejected the possibility of Scotland breaking away and becoming an independent nation in thE Thursday independence vote.
CNN reported that United Kingdom Prime Minister David Cameron welcomed Scotland’s decision in a televised statement outside 10 Downing Street, saying it was a clear result.
“Like millions of other people I am delighted,” he said.
Cameron said he would have been heartbroken to see the United Kingdom broken up but added that he had heard the call for change.
A “balanced settlement” is needed for all four nations in the union, he said, as he vowed that the promises made in campaigning would be kept.
Scottish First Minister Alex Salmond admitted defeat in an earlier televised statement and urged the rest of Scotland to do the same.
He thanked Scotland “for 1.6 million votes for Scottish independence.”
A turnout of 86% is one of the highest in the democratic world for any such vote, he said. More than 4.2 million had registered to vote on whether Scotland should be an independent country.
With 31 of 32 of councils reporting, the “No” campaign had garnered enough votes to secure their victory, and with it Scotland’s continued place within the United Kingdom.
The result means the main political parties in Westminster — and many people across the United Kingdom and Scotland — can breathe a collective sigh of relief that the threat of a breakup of a centuries-old union is over. However, many on the “Yes” side will be bitterly disappointed.
It is ‘unity over division’ —Darling
Salmond hailed the political engagement seen in Scotland during the campaign and appealed for unity going forward.
“Today of all days, as we bring Scotland together, let us not dwell on the distance we have fallen short. Let us dwell on the distance we have traveled and have confidence that a movement is abroad in Scotland that will take this nation forward, and we shall go forward as one nation.”
Labour lawmaker Alistair Darling, who led the pro-union campaign in the Scottish referendum, hailed the result Friday but said that the message that the people of Scotland want change must be heard.
“The people of Scotland have spoken,” he said.”We have chosen unity over division and positive change rather than needless separation.
“Today is a momentous result for Scotland and also for the United Kingdom as a whole — by confirming our place within the union we reaffirm all that we have in common and the bonds that tie us together. Let them never be broken.”
He gave a commitment that the political changes promised by the Westminster parties — involving the devolution of more powers to Scotland — would be kept.
Radical package of powers —Clegg
Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg, whose Liberal Democrats are in a coalition government with Cameron’s Conservatives, said he was “absolutely delighted” by the result.
“In a dangerous and uncertain world I have no doubt we are stronger, safer, and more prosperous together than we every could be apart.
“But a vote against independence was clearly not a vote against change and we must now deliver on time and in full the radical package of newly devolved powers to Scotland.
“At the same time, this referendum north of the border has led to demand for constitutional reform across the United Kingdom as people south of the border also want more control and freedom in their own hands rather than power being hoarded in Westminster.”
The first councils to declare all went to the “No” campaign, as did the capital, Edinburgh, which voted overwhelmingly to stay in the union with 123,927 for “Yes” and 194,628 “No” votes. Argyll and Bute and Aberdeenshire also voted “No.”
Glasgow delivered a solid win for the independence camp with 194,779 votes for “Yes,” and 169,347 for “No,” but the lead was not big enough to overturn the “No” camp’s overall majority.
With one result to come, the Highland district, the “No” camp maintains an 8% (54% to 46%) lead over the pro-independence camp.
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First results in Scottish referendum released •’No’ to independence voters leading
VOTERS in Scotland made their choice on Thursday whether to remain part of the United Kingdom, or form their own independent nation.
The first areas to declare their vote in the Scottish independence referendum have rejected leaving the United Kingdom, as counting continues across the country, BBC reported.
Now, the counting of the votes is underway, with the first councils beginning to report counts.
According to CNN, Clackmannanshire, the first council to report results, swung for the “No” camp, with 19,036 voters, or just under 54% of the total, choosing to stay part of the union, over 16,350 “Yes” votes, according to the counting officer.
The small district of Orkney voted overwhelmingly to remain part of the union.
The Western Isles and Shetland have joined Clackmannanshire and Orkney in declaring results, also choosing to reject independence. With these four councils, Scotland is voting 57.8% No to independence, 42.2% for separation.
Combined, the four represent about 2.3% of the electorate.
The individual counts by local authorities, there are 32 in Scotland, are ultimately immaterial as it is the total number of votes countrywide that will determine the outcome.
Polls at more than 5,500 stations across all districts, from the remote highlands and islands to the big cities of Edinburgh and Glasgow, closed at 10:00 p.m. local time (5:00 p.m. ET). People still in line to vote at that time were allowed to cast ballots.
High turnout
The first districts to report turnout have reported high participation, well over 80% in most cases, Mary Pitcaithly, chief counting officer, announced in Edinburgh.
Turnout in Glasgow, one of the Yes campaign’s heartlands, was a relatively disappointing 75%.
More than 4.2 million people registered to vote on the question: “Should Scotland be an independent country?”
Decision day for Scotland Expert: ‘Yes’ would humiliate Cameron Scotland votes:
A vote for independence would mean Scotland, with its population of about 5.3 million, splits from the rest of the United Kingdom, made up of England, Wales and Northern Ireland, in addition to Scotland.
“The people of Scotland have engaged in this conversation,” Phil MacHugh, a spokesman for the “Yes” camp, told CNN on Thursday night. “They have really gone out there, found out the information that they wanted to know, and made that choice today.”
Official results will be announced at a central counting location in Edinburgh as they come in through the night, with a final tally expected early Friday.
Prime minister’s address
British Prime Minister David Cameron will make an address Friday morning. The content will depend on the outcome of the vote, but in the event that Scottish voters decide to stay in the union, Downing Street says he will refer to plans for further redistribution of powers from the central government to the Scottish Parliament, signed by Westminster leaders earlier this week.
The counting officer for Edinburgh, Sue Bruce, explained just after 10:00 p.m. that each ballot will be double-checked, to verify each voter’s decision. She said that she hopes to announce the final result for her district, Scotland’s second largest, after Glasgow, by 5:00 a.m. local time on Friday.
Addressing dozens of election workers, Bruce added, “I look forward to working with you during the course of the evening to deliver an accurate and transparent Edinburgh count in which you and the voters of Edinburgh can have full confidence.”
How all of Scotland decides on this crucial vote is far from clear. A final poll of polls by the independent research organization ScotCen showed the “No” camp with a narrow lead on the eve of the vote, with 52% support.
A new poll, conducted Thursday, suggests that margin may have grown.
The research and consulting organisation YouGov asked more than 1,800 people who voted Thursday in Scotland as well as 800 who cast postal ballots. A small but significant majority, 54% to 46%, said Scotland should remain part of the United Kingdom, according to the poll, which was not conducted for CNN.
READ: What you need to know
Voting was brisk at one polling station in Glasgow as the polls opened on Thursday, with many people voting on the way to work or before taking their children to school.
Bad weather or the sheer volume of votes cast could slow down the counting process. However, the weather forecast appears good so far, important when some ballot boxes must be collected by helicopter, plane or boat from polling stations on distant islands.
Allegations of voting fraud were reported by Glasgow City Council, with several instances of people turning up at voting booths in Scotland’s largest city to vote, only to be told that they had already voted.
The Council stressed that there was never actually a situation of double voting and the affected ballots are now being searched for and taken away.
A simple majority is needed for either side to claim victory.
Scotland’s First Minister Alex Salmond, who has led the pro-independence “Yes Scotland” campaign, cast his ballot Friday morning in the village of Strichen, Aberdeenshire.
Labour lawmaker Alistair Darling, who has headed the pro-union “Better Together” campaign backed by the main parties in Westminster voted in Edinburgh, while former Prime Minister Gordon Brown, another pro-union campaigner, voted in the town of Kirkcaldy.
For the first time, the vote was extended to 16- and 17-year olds living in Scotland. Nearly 110,000 people younger than 18 have registered to vote.
Voters in the referendum did not have to be British citizens; Commonwealth, Irish and EU citizens who live in Scotland and are registered to vote there can cast a ballot. However, Scots living outside Scotland do not have a say.
Nearly 790,000 people applied for a postal vote the largest volume of registration for postal votes ever in Scotland.
After the polls closed, Salmond tweeted, “This has been a remarkable day. Scotland’s future truly is in Scotland’s hands.”
CNN’s Nic Robertson reported from Glasgow, Laura Smith-Spark wrote and reported in London and Euan McKirdy wrote and reported in Hong Kong. CNN’s Richard Allen Greene, Lindsay Isaac and Greg Botelho contributed to this report.
