Spaniards go to polling stations on Sunday to vote on the new constitution of the European Union (EU),which makes Spain the first member of the bloc to hold a referendum on the fate of the document.

A "yes" vote is expected to dominate the poll and the impact of the referendum will be decided by how many of Spain's 35 million eligible voters would turn out and cast votes.

To ensure a smooth vote, the Spanish government has mobilized 106,000 police to fend off potential violence from the armed Basque separatist group ETA.

The constitution, which was designed to modernize the bloc's unwieldy institutions following entries of 10 new members last May, must receive unanimous ratification from all of its 25 members in order to become effective.

Supporters of the document hope a high turnout in a convincing vote here would help dampen the "no" cries from opposing countries such as Britain and France.

According to the latest investigation by state pollster CIS, around 51 percent of Spaniards would vote in favor. Only 6 percent would vote negative.

Of those polled, 46 percent said they would almost certainly vote and 22 percent said they would probably vote. It has been estimated that a turnout of 40 percent would satisfy government and EU officials.

Although almost half of the investigated promised to vote, few in the country know what changes the constitution is going to bring about. The CIS poll said about 90 percent of Spaniards actually had little knowledge of the 350-page document agreed after four years of tortuous negotiations.
 

(Xinhua News Agency February 20, 2005)