Low number of Spoilt votes

[Podolski]

One thing I noticed yesterday that I haven't heard commented upon previously is the very low number of spoilt votes in the Lisbon Treaty referendum.

I only noticed three spoilt votes in my own tallies yesterday and the national percentage of spoilt votes was a mere 0.38% or 6,171 spoilt votes out of 1,621,037 votes cast.

We are continually told by the Yes side that people didn't understand the question put before the people and that people were confused. Strange then that the number of spolt votes was so small. Indeed the constituency with the largest number of spoilt votes was the Taoiseach's own Laois-Offaly constituency which voted Yes, followed by Carlow-Kilkenny, which was split almost exactly 50/50.

[Kf]

I only saw one deliberatly spolit vote yesterday during three hours of tallying. I was very surprised.

BTW the spolit vote wasn't particularly interesting - said something like "Give us something we fcking understand".

[geraghd]

It's terribly hard to inadvertantly spoil one's vote in a referendum. Much easier to do so in a normal election.
And most people it would seem who were confused or didn't understand the treaty simply voted No, in their infinite wisdom .

[Podolski]

Anyone got figures for spoilt votes in previous referendums?