Brexit: Britain has spoken… or has it?

The “Brexit” referendum on the United Kingdom’s membership of the European Union (EU) took place on 23 June 2016. The result was essentially 52-48 in favour of Leave, as the observed proportion of Leavers was 51.9%. On this basis, statements like “the majority of the UK chose to leave the EU” or “the British people have voted to leave the European Union” or “the will of the British people is…” have pervaded political discourse and newspaper articles since. However, all those statements are untrue or – at best – unproven.