A referendum on remaining in Yugoslavia was held in the parts of Bosnia and Herzegovina with a significant Serb population on 10 November 1991.[1] The referendum was organised by the Bosnian Serb Assembly and asked two questions; to Serbs it asked:
Non-Serbs were asked:
It was approved by 98% of voters, and Republika Srpska was subsequently established on 9 January 1992.[1]
| Question | For | Against | Invalid/ blank | Total votes | Registered voters | Turnout | Result | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Votes | % | Votes | % | ||||||
| Remaining of all Serbs in Yugoslavia | 1,161,146 | 98.00 | 2.00 | 1,550,000 | 85.00 | ||||
| Bosnia-Herzegovina to remain in Yugoslavia | 48,845 | ||||||||
| Source: Direct Democracy | |||||||||
The Bosnian government declared the referendum unconstitutional. It later held a nationwide independence referendum between 29 February and 1 March 1992, which was in turn boycotted by most of the Serbs.[2] Steven L. Burg and Paul S. Shoup interpreted the question in the plebiscite, which asked voters to stay in a "common state with Serbia, Montenegro, the SAO Krajina, SAO Slavonija, Baranja and Western Srem, and Serb Autonomous Regions" as promoting, in effect, a Greater Serbia.