Soviet Union referendum, 1991

Do you consider necessary the preservation of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics as a renewed federation of equal sovereign republics in which the rights and freedom of an individual of any nationality will be fully guaranteed?

Date

17 March 1991

Results
	Votes	%
Yes	113,512,812	7001778509999900000♠77.85%
No	32,303,977	7001221500000000000♠22.15%
Valid votes	145,816,789	7001981400000000000♠98.14%
Invalid or blank votes	2,757,817	7000186000000000000♠1.86%
Total votes	148,574,606	100.00%
Registered voters/turnout	185,647,355	7001800300000000000♠80.03%

Results by republic

Yes — No

Referendum held: 17 March 1991

A referendum on the future of the Soviet Union was held on 17 March 1991. The question put to voters was

In Kazakhstan, the wording of the referendum was changed by substituting "equal sovereign states" for "equal sovereign republics".

Although the vote was boycotted by the authorities in Armenia, Estonia, Georgia (though not the breakaway province of Abkhazia, where the result was over 98% in favour, and in South Ossetia),Latvia, Lithuania, and Moldova (though not Transnistria or Gagauzia), turnout was 80% across the rest of the Soviet Union. The referendum's question was approved by nearly 70% of voters in all nine other republics that took part. It was the only referendum in the history of the Soviet Union, which was dissolved on 26 December 1991.

On December 24, 1990, deputies of the 4th Congress of People's Deputies, having voted by name, decided to consider it necessary to preserve the USSR as a renewed federation of equal sovereign republics, which will be fully ensured human rights and freedoms of any nationality. The referendum considered five questions:

...
Wikipedia