The morning after Brexit: did UK voters really think this one through? | The Tylt

London's Daily Mail reported that a recent spike in Google searches "suggests many people don't know why they voted for Brexit:"

Analysis of Internet searches made in the small hours revealed many people may not have known exactly what they were voting for in the EU referendum....Google Trends recorded a huge spike in the number of people asking ‘What happens if we leave the EU?’, after the polls had closed.

Did those who voted "Leave" really know what that would mean for the UK?

The vote results have rocked the global economy. The New York Times reported

 Britain’s exit from the European Union shocked global markets and unleashed uncertainty. The pound plunged to its lowest level since 1985. Investors fled risky assets and turned to the dollar and the yen....[The vote to leave] has set in motion an unprecedented and unpredictable process that threatens turbulence and potential crisis — for Britain, for Europe and for the global economy.

Critics say the Leave campaign was characterized by misinformation about what EU membership meant for the UK, so perhaps voters really didn't know what the reality of leaving would mean. 

On the other hand, pro-Leave leader Boris Johnson hails the vote as a 'glorious opportunity' and UK Independence Party leader Nigel Farage hailed it as “a victory for real people, a victory for ordinary people, a victory for decent people.” Clearly some Britons voted "Leave" with their eyes open about how the decision would affect the nation. But with many "Leave" voters openly expressing regret about their votes, and thousands of people calling for a second referendum, the question remains:

Did UK voters know what they were doing when they voted to leave the European Union?