No new constitution for Vincentians

Early results from yesterday’s referendum indicate that citizens of St Vincent and the Grenadines have voted to keep their 30-year-old Constitution.



St Vincent inherited the Constitution when it gained political independence from Britain.



Preliminary figures released by the Electoral Office showed that 50 per cent of those who turned out at polling stations voted against a new constitution.



The government of Prime Minister Dr Ralph Gonsalves required 66.7 per cent of the votes to ensure a change in the constitution.



About 9,000 people were registered to vote in the first ever referendum of its kind in the Eastern Caribbean.