BarcePundit has been all over the Spanish EU referendum, the first one in a string of similar votes across Europe asking Europeans whether the newly drafted pan-European constitution is a good idea or not. The Spanish, coming late to the party after the Franco years, have generally been a pro-European bunch and support from both the governing socialists and the conservative opposition contributed to the unsurprising 76% “yes” vote. There are two things that strike me as noteworthy:

Voter Interest
Turn-out was lowest ever in Spain at 42% which again underlines the general indifference prevalent in Europe towards the eroding sovereignty of nation states. Even when given the chance to shape their destiny a significant majority in Europe prefers to stay at home or do other more important things. Think about it, given the general apathy (6% of the returned ballot was blank) the “no” voters probably turned out en masse meaning that the 17% they scored would be diluted to an even lower number if all voters had cast their ballots. No euro-skepticism in Spain.

Government Propaganda
The BarcePundit notes another important point and that is the propaganda effort by the incumbent Spanish government. This is a uniquely European phenomenon where “messages from the government” or “campaigns to get out the vote” are invariably slanted towards the outcome that those in power prefer, using public funds in the process. These are the people that contend that US elections are bought by big business, well in Europe it’s often big government or an ensconced public service that is able to effectively manipulate the outcome of elections on the taxpayer’s dime.

So, bear this in mind when other European voters get their say on the new constitution: a largely indifferent electorate and a publicly funded effort are set to contribute to a pre-ordained outcome.