Democracy can be a messy business and it looks like the shipping and other industries will have to live with unusually unpredictable politics on both sides of the Atlantic.
To start with, a raft of opinion polls show a majority of UK voters in favour of Britain leaving the European Union (EU).
The vote is not until 23 June but the Brexiteers (those who want a British exit) have crept from a substantial deficit to a small lead.
