Hackney’s vote yes for the alternative vote has been attributed to their sense of “fairness”.

Voters in Hackney bucked the national trend with 30,969 or 60.6 per cent of them opted for the alternative vote system and 20,064 or 39.3 per cent voting to stick with the first past the post system.

A further 164 votes were discounted as they were spoilt.

The yes vote was greater than the poll for either MP representing Hackney seats at last year’s General Election.

Hackney North and Stoke Newington MP Diane Abbott got 25,553 and Hackney South and Shoreditch representative Meg Hillier was elected with 23,888.

Just a handful of London boroughs returned a yes vote including Islington, Camden, Haringey, Lambeth and Southwark.

Nationally there was an overwhelming vote to stick with the existing system of electing MPs with 13 million rejecting AV and 6 million voting for AV.

Just a handful of London boroughs returned a yes vote including Islington, Camden, Haringey, Lambeth and Southwark.

Nationally there was an overwhelming vote to stick with the existing system of electing MPs with 13 million rejecting AV and 6 million voting for AV.

London Assembly member Andrew Boff who campaigned in Hackney for the yes vote said: “There was a very active campaign in Hackney, more active than the no campaign. There was a real engagement with people. It’s just a shame that the rest of the country is not as sensible.

“People in Hackney have a very strong sense of fairness.”

And he added: “Members of all parties worked together on this.”

There were 200 council staff braced to count the vote at the Britannia Leisure Centre on Friday evening, with a potential 149,606 ballot papers to check if there had been a full turnout of eligible Hackney residents.

Instead just 32 per cent of Hackney voters bothered to make their vote count and there was a similar turn out across the capital.