Scottish Assembly Referendum

In 1979, the first Scottish devolution referendum, also known as the Scottish Assembly referendum, took place, offering the Scottish electorate the opportunity to vote on whether to establish a devolved assembly with limited legislative powers. While a small majority of those who voted were in favor of devolution, the referendum had a stipulation known as the Cunningham amendment, requiring that 40% of the total registered electorate, not just those who voted, support the proposal for it to pass. This threshold was not met, with only 32.9% of the entire electorate voting in favor, resulting in the rejection of the devolution proposal and the continuation of direct rule from Westminster over Scottish affairs.