Partial results: Irish reject Lisbon Treaty with 54.7% against

The first partial results of the referendum that took place in Ireland on Thursday shows that those rejecting the Lisbon Treaty have the upper hand, the HotNews.ro correspondent there reports. The partial results after counting votes in 19 of 43 constituencies the No vote is ahead in most cases. The treaty, which should be applied starting January next year, must be ratified by all EU member states in order to take effect and Ireland is the only country where such a referendum took place.

Voters turnout was estimated at 45%.

According to the HotNews.ro correspondent to Ireland Cristian Roman, a common saying among the Irish over the past month was that three million people were deciding the future of some 500 million, considering that Ireland is the only member state to hold a referendum.

Romania ratified the treaty in February 2008.