To wish people would STOP saying 52% of people voted for Brexit......

[BertrandRussell]

No they didn't.

38ish% did.

That's 38%. This seismic change has been triggered by 38% of the population.

What does it matter?

52% of voters voted for it. That's all that matters.

Still a majority vote though.

It shows that the vast majority of people are unhappy with the way things were. There was an opportunity to vote and it was taken.

So we are blaming the non voters now?

What percentage of the population can't vote? Due to being eligible or too young?

And what percentage just didn't vote?

It doesn't matter what figure people quote

It happened

52% of people who voted chose 'leave'

There's a whole Pedants' Corner for gripes about imprecise or inaccurate use of language.

It's doesn't matter Bert the majority vote won. What % they won by is a none issue.

"t shows that the vast majority of people are unhappy with the way things were"
Vast majority?

Well if you're going to present your stats like that then you need to also list percentage of people who

Voted leave
Didn't vote when they could have
Didn't have a vote

What percentage didn't vote? 100-72

i dont think YABU.

72% of the registered voters voted, and 52% of those voted Leave.

So thats 38% of the electorate/registered voters.

62% of the british electorate didn't vote for it, but we have to go with it?

Personally i think with these kind of votes that if less than 50% of the electorate voted for it, it shouldn't pass.

What percentage of the population can't vote? Due to being eligible or too young?

38% of the electorate. Not the population.

The electorate are people eligible to vote.

I read last night that in a previous referendum, decades ago, there was a similar 52/48 split, but because that one was only 33% of the electorate, the result was rejected. There was a law in place requiring 40%.

I haven't fact checked that. However, someone has fucked up in allowing this referendum to go ahead without a similar safeguard.

There have been only 3 referenda ever in UK, I think, so that doesn't read right. Maybe in another country.

Yabu and rather bizarre. It was 52% - stop with the whatabouttery arguments aimed at undermining and criticising what is effectively the will of the British people.

Look, we never make everyone vote - it's always optional - there's a good argument for saying we should make people vote, other countries do that, making election days national holidays and fining people for not voting, but we've never felt the need in the UK to enforce it.

That being the case, 72% of people bothering to turn up is good - if you really cared about the result, then you'd get to the polling station/arrange a proxy/postal vote. I tend to view that people who don't vote don't care.

If you elect not to vote, then by proxy you are endorsing whatever result happens, be it one way, or the other.

52% of voters voted for leaving end of story! Those who couldnt be bothered to vote, register to vote etc dont count. In this election 52% is what matters.

the scottish referedum in 1979 had such a clause LizKeen

Roughly 28% of those eligible to vote, didn't. I really hope they don't feel free to whinge now

Of those who considered the issue important enough to cast a vote, the majority decided to vote Leave.

I wonder if some people will only be happy if voting is a legal requirement, which to me would be quite sinister.

Yabu and rather bizarre. It was 52% - stop with the whatabouttery arguments aimed at undermining and criticising what is effectively the will of the British people

You are wrong though. 52% of the electorate did not vote to leave. That is fact. The majority did not vote to leave.

Unfortunately that is not how British democracy works and the result stands.

For such a huge decision as this,there should have been safeguards put in place so that there had to be a majority of the electorate voting for the winning result, whichever result that was. But there wasn't.

lljkk

There have been only 3 referenda ever in UK, I think, so that doesn't read right. Maybe in another country.

theres been 11 since 1973 www.parliament.uk/get-involved/elections/referendums-held-in-the-uk/

(lighthearted).... But would you have started this thread if the result had been reversed?

I can guarantee that had the result gone the other way, the Leavers would be saying exactly the same thing as the Remainers are now andtheRemainers would be telling them to stop whining and shut up.

would you have started this thread if the result had been reversed?

Someone else would have!

62% of the british electorate didn't vote for it, but we have to go with it?

Yes. People who didn't vote don't count.

Why are people who didn't vote getting lumped in with remain? What if 52% of non voters had have gone for brexit?

I am on my phone so can't link, but the referendum I mentioned was the Scottish Devolution Referendum, 1979.