Greece Bailout Vote: Poorer Greeks Voted Against Austerity, Rich Were In Favor Of Proposal

New data on Greece’s referendum vote this past weekend showed that poorer Greeks in Athens voted against the austerity proposal while richer Greeks in the city voted in favor of it, according to a new report. Overall, 61 percent of Greeks voted "no," while 39 percent cast "yes" votes.

An interactive data map from the Guardian showed detailed demographics of how Greeks voted in the referendum. Athens' western region in the lower-income district of Peramatos, where the mean annual income was 18,546 euros, nearly 77 percent of residents voted “no." In Keratsiniou-Drapetsonas, another low-income district in western Athens with a mean income of 17,091 euros, almost 73 percent of residents cast "no" votes. Younger people voted against the referendum at a ratio of about 2 to 1, the Guardian also reported.

The wealthy northern suburbs in Athens overwhelmingly voted “yes” for the referendum. In the district of Kifisias, where the mean income was 71,283 euros, about 64 percent of residents voted in favor of the bailout program. Close to 72 percent of residents in the wealthy locale of Filotheis-Psychikou voted "yes," as well. That district's mean income was 59,298 euros.

By casting a “yes” vote in the referendum, Greeks voted in favor of the country’s acceptance of bailout funds. In exchange for the funds, the country would be agreeing to budget cuts and other austerity measures set forth by the International Monetary Fund, the European Central Bank and the European Commission, which are the country’s three creditors. Greeks who voted “yes” were in favor of the country remaining in the eurozone and against Prime Minister Alex Tsipras’ stance in rejecting the proposed bailout package. Tsipras urged his country to cast “no” votes, reassuring citizens that if the bailout package was rejected, he could renegotiate with creditors in a stronger position.

Greece has been renegotiating the terms of a $270 billion bailout program since the far-left Syriza party won elections in January. In February, the country struck a deal with the European Union to get an extra 7 billion euros in bailout funds in exchange for economic reforms and has since struggled to make debt repayments.

In a last-ditch effort to avoid a disastrous exit from the eurozone, the Greek government has formally filed a request for support from Europe’s bailout fund, according to a previous International Business Times report.