SIMFEROPOL, March 17,  /ITAR-TASS/. According to summary data, 96.7% of people voting in the Crimean referendum backed Crimea’s re-joining Russia, the head of the Supreme Council’s referendum commission, Mikhail Malyshev told Krym (Crimea) state television on Monday.

A total of 1.2 million people, or 96.7%, said they wanted to join Russia, Malyshev told the vieweres. The voter turnout was 1.2 million people, or 83.1% of eligible voters, he said summing up the results of the referendum in which voters were asked whether they wanted to join Russia or have a greater autonomy within Ukraine.

The official said 31.9 votes or 2.5%, were cast in favor of a greater autonomy within Ukraine. As many as 9.1 ballot papers (0.7%) were invalid. Malyshev said the final protocol of the election commission was signed at 06:50 local time (08:50 Moscow time) on March 17.