East Lothian is going to the polls today in the long-awaited referendum on Scottish independence.

The polling stations opened from 7am, with a high turnout expected as years of campaigning from rival groups Yes Scotland and Better Together drew to a close.

Among those due to cast their votes are some 2,153 of the county’s under-18s, with the voting age for the referendum lowered to 16.

Both sides have been prominently campaigning in recent weeks, with polls suggesting there was very little to choose between the two sides, with No appearing to hold a narrow lead.

A spokesperson for pro-independence group Yes East Lothian said on the eve of the referendum: “In East Lothian, for the past two and a half years, our incredible Yes volunteers have provided over 20 public meetings, answered every question asked of them and taken a positive vision for Scotland’s future to East Lothian’s streets and doors with information stalls, leafleting and canvassing.” Meanwhile, a spokesperson for pro-Union campaign Better Together East Lothian said: “On the final weekend of a very long campaign, Better Together East Lothian held very busy and successful street stalls in North Berwick, Haddington and Dunbar and had an excellent reception at the Sunday Market at East Fortune.

“A major canvassing operation to mobilise the No vote has been undertaken over the final days of the campaign and has been going very well.

“We are confident of a strong No vote in East Lothian.” A total of 81,931 people are registered to vote in the referendum in East Lothian.

The East Lothian count takes place in Haddington Corn Exchange, and the county is expected to be one of the first to announce its result, forecast to be somewhere between 2am and 3.30am tomorrow morning (Friday).

The final nationwide result is expected sometime between 6am and 7am.

We'll be posting live updates from the count at the Corn Exchange on our Twitter page, @elcourier, and the local result will appear on our website as soon as it's announced.