A yes vote would give the National Assembly for Wales direct law-making powers, bringing country closer to independence
Counting has begun at the Welsh assembly following a referendum to decide if it should gain direct law-making powers without having to consult Westminster and Whitehall first ? and Yes campaigners have had early success.
Blaenau Gwent, the first of the 22 county areas to declare, recorded 11,869 Yes votes against 5,366 for the No campaign.
That win was followed swiftly by another in Denbighshire, where 15,793 voted Yes against 9,734 who said No.
The count, held at the National Assembly for Wales in the Senedd buildings in Cardiff Bay, follows a day of polling across the nation.
Campaigners are hoping for a higher turnout than the 51% who voted in the 1997 referendum that established the assembly.
A quiet tension is tangible within the walls of the Senedd ? as the vote will reflect Welsh feeling towards the assembly. Yes for Wales campaigners this week argued that a no vote will not be risk-free as it would result in "Wales moving backwards".
But True Wales campaigners say the assembly should be punished for what it sees as failings in its rule-making so far ? and Welsh people now wait eagerly to see if the majority believe they should bypass Westminster in the law-making process, which could bring Wales one step closer to independence.
Results of the referendum vote are expected this afternoon.
Around 2.2 million voters were eligible to take part in the referendum, but it is not clear how many bothered to vote, with turnout not expected to be high. An opinion poll for BBC Wales has found almost half of potential voters felt they lacked enough information to make an informed decision.
A no vote would keep the current system where the assembly asks parliament for powers to be transferred to Cardiff on a case-by-case basis.
Nigel Bull of True Wales, the group that campaigned for a no vote, said they had "probably not" won but he was not conceding defeat.
"We came into this without any organisation against four party machines who were used to running campaigns," he said.
Former first minister Rhodri Morgan said it was "quite possible" it was going to be "a very low turnout". But he said that would make "no difference really" to the legitimacy of the vote.
Assembly presiding officer Lord Elis-Thomas said he was not happy with the level of debate, and had spoken to many young voters who did not have enough information.
Elis-Thomas said a House of Lords committee had recommended that referendums should be on "fundamental matters", but this vote was about a question "cobbled" together by the Labour party.
Plaid Cymru leader and deputy first minister Ieuan Wyn Jones claimed the response was "great" on polling day and people wanted the assembly "to have the right tools to get on with the job".
Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/cardiff/2011/mar/04/welsh-assembly-referendum-counting-begins
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