Iceland's voters have rejected a referendum to restart negotiations to join the European Union. RÚV, the national broadcaster, said opponents defeated the measure by a margin of 52.8% to 47.2%.

Iceland’s voters rejected a proposal to restart negotiations on joining the European Union more than a decade after previous talks ended, the national broadcaster reported Sunday.

The vote will put the long-debated issue to rest more than a decade after a euroskeptic government ended EU talks.

Opponents defeated the measure by a margin of 52.8% to 47.2%, RUV reported. The capital of Reykjavik was the only area in the island nation of 400,000 people where a majority supported the referendum.

  • Humanius@lemmy.worldEnglish
    261·
    1 day ago

    Iceland has always been very close to a 50/50 split on whether to join the EU or not. In the end it came down to the undecided voters, who ultimately landed on the “no” camp in the last few days before the referendum.

    Edit: From my understanding polling for the youth vote also switched from “yes” to “no” at the last moment, so I have my suspicions that there may have been some Tiktok propaganda tomfoolery going on as well.

    • SeductiveTortoise@piefed.socialEnglish
      12·
      1 day ago

      As a German, I would welcome Iceland to our family, but only with a higher agreement rate.

      I don’t want to have a second Brexit any time soon. 52 to 48 is bull (even if it was in favor), make it 75 and we’re talking.

      • qarbone@lemmy.worldEnglish
        1·
        8 hours ago

        I don’t want to have a second Brexit any time soon.

        How were other EU nations/citizens affected by Brexit?

        • SeductiveTortoise@piefed.socialEnglish
          1·
          8 hours ago

          You mean aside the financial burden due to the massive efforts that have been put into the diplomacy and the setting up of border stations and import checks and whatever?

          It was annoying as fuck.

      • Humanius@lemmy.worldEnglish
        15·
        1 day ago

        I was talking to my boyfriend a few weeks ago (he’s from Iceland) and he pointed out that in order to actually join the EU they’d need to amend the constitution. Specifically on the topic of sovereignty.

        In order to update the constitution they need a 2/3rds majority in parliament twice, with a parliamentary election in between.
        And that is on top of a second referendum that’d have to pass after a deal with the EU has been hammered out.

        Joining the EU would not be decided by such a narrow victory in a singular referendum.

        • tal@lemmy.todayEnglish
          1·
          2 hours ago

          I don’t know the specific of the politics surrounding this, but it might be easier to get a two-thirds supermajority in a parliamentary vote than a simple majority in a popular vote.