More than 80% of people in Spain’s autonomous Catalonia region support full independence, an informal vote organized by pro-independence activists revealed on Sunday.
Catalonia’s Vice President Joana Ortega said over two million people took part in the poll, the BBC reports.
“We have earned the right to a referendum,” said Catalan President Artur Mas, hailing the results of the non-binding vote. A Spanish constitutional court had earlier rejected a formal referendum to decide the fate of the region.
Catalans have been pushing for independence for years, citing economic and cultural alienation from the rest of the country.
But the Spanish government dismissed the poll as invalid.
“The government considers this to be a day of political propaganda organized by pro-independence forces and devoid of any kind of democratic validity,” Spain’s Justice Minister Rafael Catala said in a statement.
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