You may have seen the hashtag #EUref, #Brexit, #voteleave or #votestay over the past few days on Twitter, Instagram or even Facebook. If you have European friends, the hashtags may have even flooded your feed. What are they talking about? Here are three questions you may have asked.
1. What’s a referendum?
A referendum is a vote on an issue open to those of voting age. In this case, it refers to the issue of staying in the European Union. The United Kingdom called for a referendum on June 23 on whether or not to leave the EU. The voter turnout for the referendum was 71.8-percent, higher than any election turnout since 1992.
2. What was the turnout?
On June 24, the results came out in favor of leaving the EU. Those voting to leave the EU came out to 52-percent of the vote, while 48-percent voted to stay in the EU. The majority of young people voting wanted to stay in the EU. The majority of senior citizens voted to leave the Union.
3. What now?
David Cameron, prime minister of the United Kingdom, has resigned. Once the results came in, Cameron announced his resignation and the goal of having another prime minister in by October. Cameron was a supporter of the United Kingdom remaining in the EU.
The British pound had dropped significantly in value since the results have been announced. It is currently at its lowest value in 30 years.
The UK will enter into a process that will take two-years, minimum, to leave the EU. The process will include negotiations for a withdrawal agreement. Until then, the UK will continue to obey EU laws but will not be an active decision maker.
