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For 140 minutes, Canada held its breath.

A see-saw Yes-No battle raged through the evening of Oct. 30, 1995, capping a four-week campaign that began with the No side leading 60-40 and ended with polls showing a 50-50 split.

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Tension was running high and the deep divisions would eventually spill into the streets, albeit briefly, with riot police breaking up confrontations between bitter Yes and celebrating No supporters on Ste-Catherine St.

But before the scuffles, before Premier Jacques Parizeau’s infamous concession speech, before a chastened Prime Minister Jean Chrétien addressed the nation from an Ottawa studio, before investigations into whether the No side cheated by funding a unity rally at Place du Canada and whether the Yes side cheated by rejecting valid No votes, there was the counting of the ballots.

And the waiting.

Between the end of voting at 8 p.m. and the declaration of a winner at 10:20 p.m., most Quebecers were glued to their TV sets.