Promises are one thing, but delivery, particularly in local government, is another
Local election results in the UK carry heavy caveats for pollsters, but last week’s ballot told only one unmistakable story: the unstoppable Reform tsunami.
The culturally conservative, economically interventionist party, led by the charismatic Nigel Farage, pulled off a series of gains no other party of its ilk ever did, winning nearly 700 councilors, control of ten councils, two regional mayoralties, and coming within a whisker of snatching two more mayoralties in Labour strongholds. To top their stunning successes, they won a parliamentary by-election in one of Labour’s 50 safest seats.
The two main parties, who’ve polled at historic lows since last year’s general election, have hemorrhaged support. The Conservatives, still bruised from their drubbing in July, and who had last fought these councils on a post-vaccine rollout high in 2021, shed nearly 700 councilors, and lost control of every council they were defending. Labour, who were starting from a low base, having performed badly in 2021, still managed to lose close to 200 councilors.
Reform, having eaten the Tories’ lunch at July’s general election, are now storming through Labour’s territory, scooping up disaffected working-class voters. A sputtering economy, record illegal immigration, and unpopular measures implemented by the Labour government have driven a change-hungry electorate right into Farage’s arms.
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