2016

2016 was a leap year with 366 days in the Gregorian calendar. It is remembered for several events that significantly affected global politics, regional affairs, and public health.

Two major referendums had substantial impact on Western politics: the United Kingdom's vote on membership in the European Union, and the United States presidential election. In the same year, the Paris Agreement on climate change entered into force.

The United Kingdom referendum (Brexit)

A referendum held on 23 June 2016 asked whether the United Kingdom would remain in the European Union or leave. Overall, 33,577,342 people voted, representing 72.2% turnout. The leave side won by a narrow margin of 3.8 percentage points (51.9% leave, 48.1% remain). The result led to the resignation of Prime Minister David Cameron and initiated a lengthy process of leaving the Union.

United States presidential election

The United States presidential election was held on 8 November 2016. Republican candidate Donald Trump received 304 votes in the Electoral College, while Hillary Clinton received 227. Clinton led in the popular vote (48.2% to 46.1%), but the Electoral College system determined the outcome. The disparity sparked ongoing debate about how votes are distributed among states.

The Paris Agreement on climate

The Paris Agreement, adopted in December 2015 (COP21), entered into force on 4 November 2016. The requirement was that at least 55 countries—accounting for at least 55% of global greenhouse gas emissions—ratify the agreement; it became binding 30 days after this threshold was met. The broad objective is to limit the rise of global temperature.

Other notable events

The year is also marked by events in public health and global sports, including widespread attention to the Zika virus outbreak and the Summer Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Detailed chronologies and figures for these events were not available to the source consulted.