referendum on August 15, says Parliamentary Registrar Mrs. Marlene Christopher.

The count could "very easily'' last until 3 a.m. the next morning, if not later, Mrs. Christopher told The Royal Gazette .

Polls for the referendum are to remain open until 9 p.m. -- two hours later than they normally do for a general election.

The count will also be different from an election tally in that none of the ballots can be counted until all of them have been transported to the central counting place -- Wesley Methodist Church Hall on Church Street in Hamilton.

In a general election, ballots are counted separately in each constituency. In a referendum, all the ballots are first pooled, and no breakdown is provided of how voting varied among constituencies.

Representatives of the political parties will be invited to observe the count, Mrs. Christopher said.

And Police will escort the returning officers who transport the ballot boxes from polling stations to the church hall in Hamilton, she said.

The same security was in place for the capital punishment referendum in 1990, Mrs. Christopher said.

When the Parliamentary Register to be used in the referendum was closed, a record 38,149 names were on it. Mrs. Christopher and her staff are now working to remove the names of those who have died or are too young to vote in the plebiscite.

With 38,149 names on the roll, there would have to 15,260 "yes'' votes, in addition to a simple majority of votes cast, to give Government a mandate to negotiate Independence.

The Independence Referendum Act requires that 40 percent of all eligible voters -- in addition to a majority of those who actually vote -- approve Independence before a mandate exists.