This week, the UK voted to leave the European Union. And, accordingly, Brits were researching what would happen if they ended up leaving... after the vote. Google Trends tweeted that after the polls closed, the search engine found a 250 percent spike in searches for "what happens if we leave the EU?" and "What does it mean to leave the EU?" was the most popular EU-related search—which means either people weren't voting, or they were coming to the ballots feeling pretty confused.
Given that the most-searched question regarding the vote from the UK was "How do I vote in the EU referendum?" and that "When is the EU referendum?" and "Where can I vote?" were also in the top five, it looks like people were at least making an effort to participate, even without all the information possible.
One man who voted for the UK to leave the EU was surprised to find out his vote did, in fact, count. The incredulous man identified only as Adam said he was "a bit shocked, to be honest." He added, "My vote, I didn’t think was going to matter too much because I thought we were just going to Remain, and the David Cameron resignation has blown me away to be honest."
The second-most popular Brexit search coming from the UK was "What is 'Brexit'?," so we're really hoping Google gave those people the answers they needed in time for the referendum.
Afterward, people were trying to figure out what the decision was and what exactly it meant for their future.
But some had clearly given up on their country altogether.
Google Trends did not immediately return Complex's request for comment.
