Three-quarters of Chilean voters favour new constitution - partial count

Chileans have voted overwhelmingly for the country's Pinochet-era constitution to be redrafted, with more than 5% of votes counted from around the nation and abroad, the electoral service said on Sunday evening.

A total of 77.27% had approved the option of a fresh charter to replace one drafted in 1980 during the Augusto Pinochet military dictatorship, compared to 22.73% who voted against, the Servel election authority said. Unofficial tallies by local broadcasters suggested the vast majority of voters had also picked a specially-elected body of citizens to draft the new charter over a mixed convention of lawmakers and citizens.