Sunday's voting was largely peaceful according to local authorities, who also touted the presence of election observers from countries like Poland and Hungary.
More than 90 percent of Crimeans voted for the Ukrainian region's accession to Russia, according to an exit poll published after a controversial referendum ended on Sunday.
93 percent supported the Crimean peninsula joining Russia, while just seven percent voted for it to remain an autonomous republic inside Ukraine, said the poll, which was commissioned and published by the semi-official Kriminform news agency.
Turnout was at more than 85 percent, election officials told the Russian Interfax news agency. Preliminary results were expected overnight.
The referendum was widely condemned by Western governments, who referred to it as "illegal". The European Union and the U.S. threatened sanctions against Russia, which they accuse of invading and annexing the Ukrainian territory.
US Secretary of State John Kerry reaffirmed that the United States considers the ongoing referendum illegal under Ukrainian law and will not recognize the outcome.
The White House called the referendum "contrary to Ukraine's constitution." "The international community will not recognize the results of a poll administered under threats of violence and intimidation from a Russian military intervention that violates international law," a White House statement said.
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