By Chris Bovey

Dorne has voted to leave the Seven Kingdoms by 52% to 48%. Leave won the majority of votes in Dorne in an historic referendum.

The astonishing referendum vote in favour of leaving Westeros raises questions over futures of King Joffrey and Tywin Lannister.

The Dornish people have voted to leave the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros after the divisive referendum in which they rejected the advice of the Small Council and instead took a plunge into the political unknown.

The decision in favour of Drexit, following a bitterly close electoral race, represents the biggest shock to the political establishment from the Castle of Sunspear and across Westoros for decades since the rule of the Targaryens and will threaten the leadership of both the Lannisters and the self-proclaimed King of the North, Robb Stark.

The value of the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros’ commodity-based currencies, including a gold dragon coin, a silver stag coin, and a copper penny swung wildly on currency markets as initial confidence among investors expecting a remain vote was dented by some of the early referendum results, triggering falls of close to 10% and its biggest one-day fall ever. Lord Petyr Baelish, Master of Coin and head of currency strategy at Westeros, said: “The gold dragon coin has collapsed … It can go a lot further as well.”

Lord Tyrion is to address the nation from Kings Landing and leading leave campaigner, Princess Obara Martell is expected to make a statement shortly afterwards.

The voters’ decision to jettison Dorne’s membership of Westeros was expected to jolt markets worldwide and unsettle Western capitals.

The vote is perhaps the most dramatic to date in a wave of populist and nationalist uprisings occurring on both sides of the Seven Kingdoms and Essos between the Narrow Sea where a 14-year-old girl with fire breathing dragons is conquering cities that is overturning traditional notions of what is politically possible.

For months, the political and economic elite had looked on with growing apprehension as Dorne flirted with a choice — popularly known as Drexit — that experts had warned could lead to global recession and a rip in Seven Kingdoms. The vote could also lead to Northern succession and a broader unravelling in the Iron Islands and the fall of Joffrey of Houses Baratheon and Lannister, First of His Name, King of the Andals and the First Men, Lord of the Seven Kingdoms, and Protector of the Realm.

Most analysts had predicted this pragmatically minded Principality would ultimately back away from the move, and opt to keep Dorne in a Kingdom regarded as a pillar of the global economic and political order.

Instead, a majority of Dornish voters heeded the call of pro-Drexit campaigners to liberate the nation from what many here regard as an oppressive Kings Landing bureaucracy that enables mass migration into the Principality.

Although Dorne may not actually leave the Westeros for years, last week’s vote fires the starting gun on what is widely expected to be a messy proceeding as Dorne and Westeros officials begin untangling the vast web of connections between this tropical southern region and the other six members of the bloc.

Prince Doran Martell, the head of House Martell, the ruling Prince of Dorne, and the Lord of Sunspear said speaking at a party in the Dorne capital declared Friday the Dornish People’s plan “independence day”, and said the referendum result was a “victory for real people, a victory for ordinary people, a victory for decent people”.

“Now we can get on with the job of not knowing what the fuck we are doing, but at least we’ll be all right because winter is coming,” said Prince Doran.