SUMMER rain threatened to dampen the turnout as EU refe-rain-dum finally took place after months of political wrangling, experts suggested yesterday.

Politicians left and right tried to make a last-minute splash as they posed outside polling booths, Theresa May making a late surge with the bookies for next Tory leader while Nigel Farage released a last minute video riffing off the US film title Independence Day.

A record number of voters registered to take part in the somewhat soggy polls, with the Electoral Commission putting the final totals at 46,499,537.

And a torrent of early voting that saw queues forming outside some polling stations pointed to a higher than usual turnout.
But a unseasonal downpour forced some voting stations to close.

Kingston-upon-Thames Council in south-west London was forced to relocate two polling stations after they became flooded.

The Electoral Reform Society predicted turnout could be lower than last year’s general election, when 66 per cent of the population went to the polls.

And the biggest rainfall was in London, which is considered to be the strongest area of England for the Remain campaign.

Ukip leader Nigel Farage suggested it would put off some “soft” Remain voters to the benefit of the Leave campaign.