...to be proud of my mum (more Brexit)

[Gert]

She's a self-confessed xenophobe, scared silly of immigration, believes we were better before the EU, but voted Remain on the basis that she believed it would be best for her children and grandchildren. She says she's 'had' her life (I don't agree) and that this referendum has gone the way it has largely due to baby boomers voting for their memories of the past.

I'm not saying she's right in her vote, but she's proved herself unlike the majority of this predominantly elderly village and I admire her for that.

[MrsTerryPratchett]

Regardless of her vote direction, she is a thoughtful, far-thinking, selfless voter. That is to be commended.

[user12785]

You should be proud of her :)

[skippy67]

YANBU

[TheManaha]

Omg another one

[ThisisMrsNicolaHicklin]

Good on her, you should be proud.

[Gert]

Cheers, I was pleasantly shocked...given the opinions she often voices!

Has anyone else been surprised by family/friends' votes?

[MrsTerryPratchett]

Mine have been painfully according to type.

[iamEarthymama]

Well done, your mother!

[WreckingBallsInsideMyHead]

One of my uncles voted leave even though two of his brothers live and work in the EU

[Valentine2]

Give her a hug from me too

[BocaDeTrucha]

Well done, Gert's mum!!!!

[tiredandhungryalways]

What a gem

[Gert]

Completely hypothetically speaking, it would be great to know more about the demographics on who voted what, wouldn't it?

I'd love to know how much of an age-related outcome it was, and also for who abstained.

[Patapouf]

My grandmother did the same, despite veering to the wrong side of xenophobia. She recognises that it's not fair to impose her outdated values on generations that will have to live with the decision for 80+ years

[Schumann]

My PIL did the same. We are (pleasantly ) surprised and also proud of them. They voted remain (even though they would naturally be voteleave ) as they believe it will affect us and our DC most.

[Gert]

Good on your families, Patapouf and Schumann. It's not about what they voted, just that they recognised the potential impact on younger generations and how different yesterday was to a general election.

[CharlieSierra]

MN at its ageist and patronising best.

[blitheringbuzzards1234]

MIL holds exactly the same sentiments as your mum. She can be very narrow minded, racist/sexist, is in her 90s and describes herself as uneducated.

[MrsJorahMormont]

I wish I could say the same of my older relatives, including parents. My aunt and uncle were the worst - they have a holiday home abroad and spend a lot of time there, have large pensions which they have enjoyed for twenty plus years and counting after early retirement, had fantastic care on the NHS and a council house they sold to 'move up' the ladder etc.

They voted to leave, spouting some utter rubbish about immigrants from the Daily Mail (there are virtually no immigrants in their leafy corner of the world). It feels like they have drained the system dry of everything, then voted to shaft all of the next generations, without having to stay and face the consequences themselves. I am very angry at them, especially when I look at my tiny DD

Well done to your mum though, for what it was worth

[LuckyBitches]

Yanbu. I wish that sort of reason had won out in the end.

[Gert]

I don't see how appreciating someone voting for their kids rather than themselves is ageist or patronising.

[HanYOLO]

Nothing on abstention but proportion of voters by age if you scroll down how did different demographic groups vote

[Gert]

HanYOLO, thanks for that. Looks like Ma wasn't off on the baby boomers comment, even if the 'voting for memories of the past' bit was just her assumption.

[RiceCrispieTreats]

Here's a breakdown by age, and by how long each age group has to live with the decision.

[LunaLoveg00d]

It's really not helpful to get into lengthy discussions about older people voting a certain way, or women, or students, or anyone else.

This is exactly what happened after the Scottish indy ref and it was horrible, there was so much hatred from the losing side directed at older people and people in more affluent areas who were more likely to vote to stay in the UK. And remember too that the Electoral Commission doesn't issue these sorts of statistics - it's all done by polling companies and we know how accurate they are.