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LISBON OUTCOME:DESPITE WIDESPREAD support among the Irish public for Ireland's membership of the European Union and even more widespread appreciation of the benefits that have accrued to Ireland from that membership, on Friday 13th of June, 2008 it emerged that the Irish electorate, or more precisely, the 53 per cent of the electorate that voted, had rejected the Treaty of Lisbon (by 53.4 to 46.6) just as they had done in 2001 to the Treaty of Nice. Why?

The Irish Times/TNSmrbi final poll of the campaign proved remarkably accurate both in predicting the final outcome - the poll's projection of the result with about a week to go was 54 No to 46 Yes - and in capturing the ongoing uncertainty in the form of a block of 35 per cent of "don't knows".