Campaigning has been halted for the third day following the murder of MK Jo Cox, but polls continue to report on the status of the upcoming June 23rd Brexit vote and the numbers are almost tied.
The first opinion poll conducted since Thursday’s slaying shows 45% of those asked by a telephone poll of 1,001 adults on Friday and Saturday voting to stay in the EU and 42% favoring a Brexit.
The poll marked a reversal of positions from the previous survey released just before pro-EU Labor Party lawmaker Cox was murdered as she met constituents in her electoral district in northern England. That report showed increasing support for withdrawal from the EU with numbers coming in at 44 percent voting to remain and 43 percent to leave.
More Concern for Economy
The pollster, however, said it doubted that the increase in supporting a vote in favor of the EU was linked to the death of Cox and suggested it may relate more to concerns about what Brexit would mean for the economy which have become more pronounced of late.
According to Prime Minister David Cameron who wrote in an article published in the Sunday Telegraph, there would be “no turning back” from quitting the EU and that doing so would trigger a “probable recession.”
“If you’re not sure, don’t take the risk of leaving,” he wrote. “If you don’t know, don’t go.”
Pro-Brexit Justice Secretary Michael Gove wrote in the same publication that “…rather than suffering a recession, the U.K. would thrive outside of the EU” and he urged the public to “vote for hope.”