2004 Saban status referendum

A status referendum was held on the island of Saba on 5 November 2004.^[1]

2004 Saban status referendum

5 November 2004
Results
Choice Votes  % Remain in the Netherlands Antilles 85 13.18% Direct ties with the Netherlands 555 86.05% Independence 5 0.78% Valid votes 645 96.85% Invalid or blank votes 21 3.15% Total votes 666 100.00% Registered voters/turnout 856 77.8%

Background

After the 1994 referendum came out in favour of maintaining and restructuring the Netherlands Antilles, the government of the Netherlands Antilles tried to restructure the Netherlands Antilles and attempted to forge closer ties between the islands, as is exemplified by the adoption of an anthem of the Netherlands Antilles in 2000. A new referendum on Sint Maarten, which was in favour of a separate status for Sint Maarten as a country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands, sparked a new series of referendums across the Netherlands Antilles, however.

86.05% of the population in Saba voted for closer links to the Netherlands; remaining a part of the Netherlands Antilles got 13.18% of the vote. Independence got less than one percent of the vote.

Results

Choice		Votes	%
Direct constitutional ties with the Netherlands		555	86.05
Remain part of the Netherlands Antilles		85	13.18
Independence		5	0.78
Total		645	100.00
Valid votes		645	96.85
Invalid/blank votes		21	3.15
Total votes		666	100.00
Registered voters/turnout		856	77.80
Source: Direct Democracy

See also

• Dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles
  • 2000 Sint Maarten status referendum
  • 2004 Bonaire status referendum
  • 2005 Curaçao status referendum
  • 2005 Sint Eustatius status referendum