in the UK Parliament, which it has had continuously since winning the 1967 Hamilton by-election. The SNP and the Scottish Greens both have representation within the Scottish Parliament, with the SNP having formed the Scottish Government since 2007. Independence referendum (2014) The SNP won an overall majority in the 2011 Scottish Parliament election. Following that election, the UK and Scottish Governments agreed that the Scottish Parliament should be given the legal authority to hold an independence referendum by the end of 2014. The referendum was held on 18 September 2014, asking voters in Scotland the following question: "Should Scotland be an independent country?". At the poll, 2,001,926 voters (55%) rejected the proposal for Scotland to become an independent state over 1,617,989 (45%), who voted in favour of Scottish independence. The referendum result was accepted by the Scottish and British governments, leading to Scotland remaining a devolved part of the United Kingdom. Further moves have since been made towards increased devolution of power to the Scottish Parliament, which has been incorporated into UK law via the Scotland Act of 2016. Subsequent elections Following the September 2014 referendum, the pro-independence SNP benefitted from increased membership and political support. In the 2015 general election, the SNP won 56 of the 59 seats contested in Scotland, with the three main British parties winning one seat each. The pro-unionist Scottish Conservatives then also saw increased support in the 2016 Scottish Parliament and 2017 UK general elections. Before the latter election, the Scottish Government (formed by the SNP) had proposed a second Scottish independence referendum, due to the "Leave" victory in the June 2016 referendum on UK membership of the European Union, which the majority of voters in Scotland voted against. The SNP won 35 seats in the 2017 UK general election, a loss of 21 from the 2015 election, with their vote dropping from 50% in 2015 to 37%. In the 2019 UK general election, SNP support increased to 45% of the vote and they won 48 of the 59 seats contested in Scotland. The election was focused around Brexit, as the Conservative government led by Boris Johnson pledged to "get Brexit done". Despite losing seats in Scotland, the Conservatives won an overall majority and the UK left the European Union on 31 January 2020. Demographics An academic study surveying 5,000 Scots following the referendum in 2014, found that the "No" campaign performed strongest among