With hindsight it appears the early market lurch to Labour was based on absolutely fuck all. Also I note the runner up wasn't even listed as a runner !
Lib Dems won't be displeased after effectively sitting this one out and still beating Reform's much higher profile campaign. Not terrible for the Tories narrative wise too despite their dire vote share %
Reform despite holding their deposit will be miffed not to grab a second that was probably the most gettable second in BE history.
Of course the biggest issues from this BE aren't for any of the above but for Starmer.
Tully camp will be chuffed to bits with their performance. Should be able to do well in the locals if he wants to run himself and a few others off the back of this.
"Lib Dems won't be displeased"
Hmmm..... This was a LibDem seat until 2010. Piss-poor result for them.
Strange, isn't it? It's almost as though something happened in 2010 that destroyed the party.
With hindsight it appears the early market lurch to Labour was based on absolutely fuck all. Also I note the runner up wasn't even listed as a runner !
Lib Dems won't be displeased after effectively sitting this one out and still beating Reform's much higher profile campaign. Not terrible for the Tories narrative wise too despite their dire vote share %
Reform despite holding their deposit will be miffed not to grab a second that was probably the most gettable second in BE history.
Of course the biggest issues from this BE aren't for any of the above but for Starmer.
Tully camp will be chuffed to bits with their performance. Should be able to do well in the locals if he wants to run himself and a few others off the back of this.
"Lib Dems won't be displeased"
Hmmm..... This was a LibDem seat until 2010. Piss-poor result for them.
Strange, isn't it? It's almost as though something happened in 2010 that destroyed the party.
Yes. They got power and realised that power meant compromises.
TBF, I think their main problems are nothing to do with 2010. It is that they are no longer the third party: the SNP are, which removes much of their parliamentary power. Another is that their leader might be a nice person, but he's not particularly good.
Not a good one for our Country's divisive politics and terrible when you compare and contrast to the late Tony Lloyd
Neither is this good news for Starmer both inside and outside the HOC as some of his seats must be under threat including Wes Streeting
As they say a week is a long time in politics
I’d be surprised if Streeting was in any kind of danger. I doubt Galloway will hold Rochdale in the GE. He hit his ceiling yesterday. But there are going to be a few days of bad headlines for Starmer. This result will be wildly overanalysed.
Not a good one for our Country's divisive politics and terrible when you compare and contrast to the late Tony Lloyd
Neither is this good news for Starmer both inside and outside the HOC as some of his seats must be under threat including Wes Streeting
As they say a week is a long time in politics
I’d be surprised if Streeting was in any kind of danger. I doubt Galloway will hold Rochdale in the GE. He hit his ceiling yesterday. But there are going to be a few days of bad headlines for Starmer. This result will be wildly overanalysed.
Leeane Mohamad is a good candidate but, given how much all right thinking people despise the tories, she'd probably need take 10k+ off Wonderboy to let them through and consign him to oblivion.
I presume, but don’t remember seeing mentioned anywhere, that Cllr Ali is no longer a Labour councillor in Lancashire and, indeed, no longer their group leader?
With hindsight it appears the early market lurch to Labour was based on absolutely fuck all. Also I note the runner up wasn't even listed as a runner !
Lib Dems won't be displeased after effectively sitting this one out and still beating Reform's much higher profile campaign. Not terrible for the Tories narrative wise too despite their dire vote share %
Reform despite holding their deposit will be miffed not to grab a second that was probably the most gettable second in BE history.
Of course the biggest issues from this BE aren't for any of the above but for Starmer.
Tully camp will be chuffed to bits with their performance. Should be able to do well in the locals if he wants to run himself and a few others off the back of this.
"Lib Dems won't be displeased"
Hmmm..... This was a LibDem seat until 2010. Piss-poor result for them.
Iran is another country where you have to wonder what is coming next. But as long as the Ayatollahs have the Revolutionary Guard they’re not likely going anywhere. More violence and intimidation would be my guess.
With hindsight it appears the early market lurch to Labour was based on absolutely fuck all. Also I note the runner up wasn't even listed as a runner !
Lib Dems won't be displeased after effectively sitting this one out and still beating Reform's much higher profile campaign. Not terrible for the Tories narrative wise too despite their dire vote share %
Reform despite holding their deposit will be miffed not to grab a second that was probably the most gettable second in BE history.
Of course the biggest issues from this BE aren't for any of the above but for Starmer.
Tully camp will be chuffed to bits with their performance. Should be able to do well in the locals if he wants to run himself and a few others off the back of this.
"Lib Dems won't be displeased"
Hmmm..... This was a LibDem seat until 2010. Piss-poor result for them.
Losing here.
Their obsession with bars may not have gone over too well.
With hindsight it appears the early market lurch to Labour was based on absolutely fuck all. Also I note the runner up wasn't even listed as a runner !
Lib Dems won't be displeased after effectively sitting this one out and still beating Reform's much higher profile campaign. Not terrible for the Tories narrative wise too despite their dire vote share %
Reform despite holding their deposit will be miffed not to grab a second that was probably the most gettable second in BE history.
Of course the biggest issues from this BE aren't for any of the above but for Starmer.
Tully camp will be chuffed to bits with their performance. Should be able to do well in the locals if he wants to run himself and a few others off the back of this.
"Lib Dems won't be displeased"
Hmmm..... This was a LibDem seat until 2010. Piss-poor result for them.
Losing here.
I am a a loss as to the Lib Dem approach to this seat.... they have plenty of members in the NW and with the Lab withdrawal I imagined they would have made a play here... as pointed out it had been a LD seat not that long ago and with the Blues, Reds and others floundering a decent 2nd should have been on the cards. If they are serious about challenging Labour they should have fought a better battle.
SKS fans please explain how your boy Luke Akehurst managed to totally balls this up and lose one of its safest seats.
On the other hand if an official Labour candidate that they had campaigned for had lost to Galloway, it would have been even more embarrassing. Akehurst played a blinder!
Galloway. Stood in 9 different Westminster seats, won in 5 of them.
Farage. Stood in 6 different Westminster seats, won in 0 of them.
Farage: achieved primary strategic objective
Galloway: best known for pretending to be a cat
Hasn't Farage disclaimed Brexit as not the sort of Brexit he wanted, and that it has failed?
He could not even get elected once, despite being leader of a party that was polling highly.
Farage = failure.
His aim was to get us out of the EU. In that he succeeded spectacularly. He may not like what followed compared to his ideal but in terms of impact on British politics, he knocks Galloway into a cocked hat.
With hindsight it appears the early market lurch to Labour was based on absolutely fuck all. Also I note the runner up wasn't even listed as a runner !
Lib Dems won't be displeased after effectively sitting this one out and still beating Reform's much higher profile campaign. Not terrible for the Tories narrative wise too despite their dire vote share %
Reform despite holding their deposit will be miffed not to grab a second that was probably the most gettable second in BE history.
Of course the biggest issues from this BE aren't for any of the above but for Starmer.
Tully camp will be chuffed to bits with their performance. Should be able to do well in the locals if he wants to run himself and a few others off the back of this.
Just Starmer? Or even mainly Starmer who at least has the plausible excuse that Labour did not campaign after disowning its candidate?
All the national parties were beaten by Galloway and an independent. Labour, Conservative, LibDems, Greens, Reform nowhere. Even allowing for two disowned candidates, that is surely remarkable.
Starmer's ideal result would have been Ali being about a thousand votes either ahead or behind Galloway. The complete thumping, even of a disowned candidate isn't a great sign. Reform doing better would also have been good for him as it would have put Sunak under the pump more.
I think Reform would be rightly dissapointed with this result. They should have gone better in such an open by-election.
Galloway. Stood in 9 different Westminster seats, won in 5 of them.
Farage. Stood in 6 different Westminster seats, won in 0 of them.
Farage: achieved primary strategic objective
Galloway: best known for pretending to be a cat
Hasn't Farage disclaimed Brexit as not the sort of Brexit he wanted, and that it has failed?
He could not even get elected once, despite being leader of a party that was polling highly.
Farage = failure.
His aim was to get us out of the EU. In that he succeeded spectacularly. He may not like what followed compared to his ideal but in terms of impact on British politics, he knocks Galloway into a cocked hat.
Both of these maverick politicians have damaged British politics in profound ways. Their disrespect for truth and readiness to wilfully mislead and misrepresent have degraded the political discourse. Shallow gadflies maybe, but corrosive and dangerous for all that.
Galloway. Stood in 9 different Westminster seats, won in 5 of them.
Farage. Stood in 6 different Westminster seats, won in 0 of them.
Farage: achieved primary strategic objective
Galloway: best known for pretending to be a cat
Hasn't Farage disclaimed Brexit as not the sort of Brexit he wanted, and that it has failed?
He could not even get elected once, despite being leader of a party that was polling highly.
Farage = failure.
His aim was to get us out of the EU. In that he succeeded spectacularly. He may not like what followed compared to his ideal but in terms of impact on British politics, he knocks Galloway into a cocked hat.
He stood for election six times. He failed six times.
His thing was to shout incoherently about how everything was someone else's fault, and when he gets what he wants and it's crummy, he still says it's someone else's fault.
With hindsight it appears the early market lurch to Labour was based on absolutely fuck all. Also I note the runner up wasn't even listed as a runner !
Lib Dems won't be displeased after effectively sitting this one out and still beating Reform's much higher profile campaign. Not terrible for the Tories narrative wise too despite their dire vote share %
Reform despite holding their deposit will be miffed not to grab a second that was probably the most gettable second in BE history.
Of course the biggest issues from this BE aren't for any of the above but for Starmer.
Tully camp will be chuffed to bits with their performance. Should be able to do well in the locals if he wants to run himself and a few others off the back of this.
"Lib Dems won't be displeased"
Hmmm..... This was a LibDem seat until 2010. Piss-poor result for them.
Some of the current seat was held by the Lib Dems, but as noted below, the boundaries changed quite a bit, together with significant demographic changes. So actually I think the Lib Dems won't be too unhappy.
Galloway. Stood in 9 different Westminster seats, won in 5 of them.
Farage. Stood in 6 different Westminster seats, won in 0 of them.
Farage: achieved primary strategic objective
Galloway: best known for pretending to be a cat
Hasn't Farage disclaimed Brexit as not the sort of Brexit he wanted, and that it has failed?
He could not even get elected once, despite being leader of a party that was polling highly.
Farage = failure.
His aim was to get us out of the EU. In that he succeeded spectacularly. He may not like what followed compared to his ideal but in terms of impact on British politics, he knocks Galloway into a cocked hat.
Farage is probably the most consequential and successful British politician since Blair. Arguably he changed the country even MORE than Blair
When he joined UKIP they were a minor fringe party. Farage made them so successful they forced a referendum on the EU, then won the referendum - what compares with that?
Galloway. Stood in 9 different Westminster seats, won in 5 of them.
Farage. Stood in 6 different Westminster seats, won in 0 of them.
Farage: achieved primary strategic objective
Galloway: best known for pretending to be a cat
Hasn't Farage disclaimed Brexit as not the sort of Brexit he wanted, and that it has failed?
He could not even get elected once, despite being leader of a party that was polling highly.
Farage = failure.
His aim was to get us out of the EU. In that he succeeded spectacularly. He may not like what followed compared to his ideal but in terms of impact on British politics, he knocks Galloway into a cocked hat.
Farage is probably the most consequential and successful British politician since Blair. Arguably he changed the country even MORE than Blair
When he joined UKIP they were a minor fringe party. Farage made them so successful they forced a referendum on the EU, then won the referendum - what compares with that?
Galloway is a tuppeny agitator in comparison
Both Farage and Galloway are tuppeny agitators. Farage has caused much more damage to the country, though.
Galloway. Stood in 9 different Westminster seats, won in 5 of them.
Farage. Stood in 6 different Westminster seats, won in 0 of them.
Farage: achieved primary strategic objective
Galloway: best known for pretending to be a cat
Hasn't Farage disclaimed Brexit as not the sort of Brexit he wanted, and that it has failed?
He could not even get elected once, despite being leader of a party that was polling highly.
Farage = failure.
His aim was to get us out of the EU. In that he succeeded spectacularly. He may not like what followed compared to his ideal but in terms of impact on British politics, he knocks Galloway into a cocked hat.
Both of these maverick politicians have damaged British politics in profound ways. Their disrespect for truth and readiness to wilfully mislead and misrepresent have degraded the political discourse. Shallow gadflies maybe, but corrosive and dangerous for all that.
George's ability to win elections is something to admire, I dont agree with a lot of what he says but his ability to flip seats is perhaps something all parties need to look at. I can only imagine his place in UK politics if the HoC elected using a PR list system
With hindsight it appears the early market lurch to Labour was based on absolutely fuck all. Also I note the runner up wasn't even listed as a runner !
Lib Dems won't be displeased after effectively sitting this one out and still beating Reform's much higher profile campaign. Not terrible for the Tories narrative wise too despite their dire vote share %
Reform despite holding their deposit will be miffed not to grab a second that was probably the most gettable second in BE history.
Of course the biggest issues from this BE aren't for any of the above but for Starmer.
Tully camp will be chuffed to bits with their performance. Should be able to do well in the locals if he wants to run himself and a few others off the back of this.
Just Starmer? Or even mainly Starmer who at least has the plausible excuse that Labour did not campaign after disowning its candidate?
All the national parties were beaten by Galloway and an independent. Labour, Conservative, LibDems, Greens, Reform nowhere. Even allowing for two disowned candidates, that is surely remarkable.
Starmer's ideal result would have been Ali being about a thousand votes either ahead or behind Galloway. The complete thumping, even of a disowned candidate isn't a great sign. Reform doing better would also have been good for him as it would have put Sunak under the pump more.
Starmer's support is a mile wide but an inch deep.
The Galloway promise/threat to stand hundreds at the election is not nothing. He will have a profile now and he might engineer some material poll numbers. Doesn’t stop Labour winning but might be a drag on the 400 seat scenarios.
Galloway. Stood in 9 different Westminster seats, won in 5 of them.
Farage. Stood in 6 different Westminster seats, won in 0 of them.
Farage: achieved primary strategic objective
Galloway: best known for pretending to be a cat
Hasn't Farage disclaimed Brexit as not the sort of Brexit he wanted, and that it has failed?
He could not even get elected once, despite being leader of a party that was polling highly.
Farage = failure.
His aim was to get us out of the EU. In that he succeeded spectacularly. He may not like what followed compared to his ideal but in terms of impact on British politics, he knocks Galloway into a cocked hat.
Farage is probably the most consequential and successful British politician since Blair. Arguably he changed the country even MORE than Blair
When he joined UKIP they were a minor fringe party. Farage made them so successful they forced a referendum on the EU, then won the referendum - what compares with that?
Galloway is a tuppeny agitator in comparison
Both Farage and Galloway are tuppeny agitators. Farage has caused much more damage to the country, though.
Farage had one overriding political aim. Brexit. When he began his political career it was deemed impossible, yet he achieved the impossible
That makes him a very notable and successful politician, he will be a significant figure in the history of early 21st century Britain
Galloway will be a footnote
Of course, you may consider Brexit a grievous error, but that’s a different question
The Galloway promise/threat to stand hundreds at the election is not nothing. He will have a profile now and he might engineer some material poll numbers. Doesn’t stop Labour winning but might be a drag on the 400 seat scenarios.
How many times has he said that before? And it's never happened. 2005 he managed 26, with minimal impact.
He's a one-man ego trip. And an even nastier human being then Farage, which is some achievement.
But just by being there spewing his anti-Semitic bile and 1950s cliches about class warfare and the role of women he's poison in our system.
Galloway. Stood in 9 different Westminster seats, won in 5 of them.
Farage. Stood in 6 different Westminster seats, won in 0 of them.
Farage: achieved primary strategic objective
Galloway: best known for pretending to be a cat
Hasn't Farage disclaimed Brexit as not the sort of Brexit he wanted, and that it has failed?
He could not even get elected once, despite being leader of a party that was polling highly.
Farage = failure.
His aim was to get us out of the EU. In that he succeeded spectacularly. He may not like what followed compared to his ideal but in terms of impact on British politics, he knocks Galloway into a cocked hat.
To have your life's work such a damaging failure that your only way of rationalising it to yourself is to become its critic, is not something to be envied.
The Galloway promise/threat to stand hundreds at the election is not nothing. He will have a profile now and he might engineer some material poll numbers. Doesn’t stop Labour winning but might be a drag on the 400 seat scenarios.
How many times has he said that before? And it's never happened. 2005 he managed 26, with minimal impact.
He's a one-man ego trip. And an even nastier human being then Farage, which is some achievement.
But just by being there spewing his anti-Semitic bile and 1950s cliches about class warfare and the role of women he's poison in our system.
Different circumstances though: a whole new generation of young people who have yet to discover he’s a prick, and lots of cash willing to refight Gaza’s issues in a U.K. GE despite us being irrelevant to the situation.
With hindsight it appears the early market lurch to Labour was based on absolutely fuck all. Also I note the runner up wasn't even listed as a runner !
Lib Dems won't be displeased after effectively sitting this one out and still beating Reform's much higher profile campaign. Not terrible for the Tories narrative wise too despite their dire vote share %
Reform despite holding their deposit will be miffed not to grab a second that was probably the most gettable second in BE history.
Of course the biggest issues from this BE aren't for any of the above but for Starmer.
Tully camp will be chuffed to bits with their performance. Should be able to do well in the locals if he wants to run himself and a few others off the back of this.
Just Starmer? Or even mainly Starmer who at least has the plausible excuse that Labour did not campaign after disowning its candidate?
All the national parties were beaten by Galloway and an independent. Labour, Conservative, LibDems, Greens, Reform nowhere. Even allowing for two disowned candidates, that is surely remarkable.
The only party who stood last time and didn’t see their vote share go down was the LibDems. I’m going to call that a win for the LibDems!
Galloway. Stood in 9 different Westminster seats, won in 5 of them.
Farage. Stood in 6 different Westminster seats, won in 0 of them.
Farage: achieved primary strategic objective
Galloway: best known for pretending to be a cat
Hasn't Farage disclaimed Brexit as not the sort of Brexit he wanted, and that it has failed?
He could not even get elected once, despite being leader of a party that was polling highly.
Farage = failure.
His aim was to get us out of the EU. In that he succeeded spectacularly. He may not like what followed compared to his ideal but in terms of impact on British politics, he knocks Galloway into a cocked hat.
Farage is probably the most consequential and successful British politician since Blair. Arguably he changed the country even MORE than Blair
When he joined UKIP they were a minor fringe party. Farage made them so successful they forced a referendum on the EU, then won the referendum - what compares with that?
Galloway is a tuppeny agitator in comparison
I think Farage is actually a nicer person than Galloway.
Galloway. Stood in 9 different Westminster seats, won in 5 of them.
Farage. Stood in 6 different Westminster seats, won in 0 of them.
Farage: achieved primary strategic objective
Galloway: best known for pretending to be a cat
Hasn't Farage disclaimed Brexit as not the sort of Brexit he wanted, and that it has failed?
He could not even get elected once, despite being leader of a party that was polling highly.
Farage = failure.
His aim was to get us out of the EU. In that he succeeded spectacularly. He may not like what followed compared to his ideal but in terms of impact on British politics, he knocks Galloway into a cocked hat.
Farage is probably the most consequential and successful British politician since Blair. Arguably he changed the country even MORE than Blair
When he joined UKIP they were a minor fringe party. Farage made them so successful they forced a referendum on the EU, then won the referendum - what compares with that?
Galloway is a tuppeny agitator in comparison
Both Farage and Galloway are tuppeny agitators. Farage has caused much more damage to the country, though.
Farage had one overriding political aim. Brexit. When he began his political career it was deemed impossible, yet he achieved the impossible
That makes him a very notable and successful politician, he will be a significant figure in the history of early 21st century Britain
Galloway will be a footnote
Of course, you may consider Brexit a grievous error, but that’s a different question
It was not 'the impossible'. All it took was to plug away at it for years; and to give Farage credit, he did that. But so did many other people, including many within the Conservative Party, for whom EUphobia was more important than good governance.
They got what we wanted, and as a result... we have EUPhobia and bad governance...
That is Farage's legacy. A diminished, poorer, and more divided Britain. Trebles all round!
This was a vote against Netanyahu. It might sound strange but yesterday revulsion at the treatment of Gazans reached fever pitch (anyone seeing the footage would understand why) and Gorgous was the person most powerfully articulating the anger and impotence most people felt. This would have gone well beyond just Muslims. It was one of the most distressing sights I've seen. The Israelis action has moved way beyond security into outright barbarism.
I overestimated the impact of postal votes. And I overestimated the inertia of the voters. I'd kinda assumed most of them voters would still choose between the traditional main parties, and didn't see so many picking one of the Independents.
Only 26.7% of the vote for the traditional main three parties, and only 34.4% of the vote for the five parties who dominate recent opinion polls.
This was a vote against Netanyahu. It might sound strange but yesterday revulsion at the treatment of Gazans reached fever pitch (anyone seeing the footage would understand why) and Gorgous was the person most powerfully articulating their anger. This would have gone well beyond just Muslims. It wasd one of the most distressing sights I've seen for a long time. The Israelis behaviour has gone way beyond security concerns into outright barbarism.
Yes, I agree the Israelis are committing war crimes.
Galloway is a cynical, and sometimes vaguely fanatical opportunist, but he was in the right place at the right time to help articulate a reaction, however compromised by prejudice his candidacies may be.
With hindsight it appears the early market lurch to Labour was based on absolutely fuck all. Also I note the runner up wasn't even listed as a runner !
Lib Dems won't be displeased after effectively sitting this one out and still beating Reform's much higher profile campaign. Not terrible for the Tories narrative wise too despite their dire vote share %
Reform despite holding their deposit will be miffed not to grab a second that was probably the most gettable second in BE history.
Of course the biggest issues from this BE aren't for any of the above but for Starmer.
Tully camp will be chuffed to bits with their performance. Should be able to do well in the locals if he wants to run himself and a few others off the back of this.
"Lib Dems won't be displeased"
Hmmm..... This was a LibDem seat until 2010. Piss-poor result for them.
Strange, isn't it? It's almost as though something happened in 2010 that destroyed the party.
Yes. They got power and realised that power meant compromises.
TBF, I think their main problems are nothing to do with 2010. It is that they are no longer the third party: the SNP are, which removes much of their parliamentary power. Another is that their leader might be a nice person, but he's not particularly good.
They sold their support for a mess of a referendum on changing the voting system.
I think they would have done far better to base the "red line" in the coalition negotiations squarely on policy principles - most important of all, to avoid breaking the personal signed pledges their candidates had given about how they would vote, if elected, on university tuition fees (notwithstanding the stupidity of that gimmick in the first place).
As it was, they were seen as staking it all on the AV referendum - not even a proportional system, unless by accident, but one that would tend to favour centre parties. And they lost that referendum by a mile anyway, so the sacrifice of principles was all for nothing.
The Galloway promise/threat to stand hundreds at the election is not nothing. He will have a profile now and he might engineer some material poll numbers. Doesn’t stop Labour winning but might be a drag on the 400 seat scenarios.
How many times has he said that before? And it's never happened. 2005 he managed 26, with minimal impact.
He's a one-man ego trip. And an even nastier human being then Farage, which is some achievement.
But just by being there spewing his anti-Semitic bile and 1950s cliches about class warfare and the role of women he's poison in our system.
He is awful.
Does his Workers Party have anyone else in it who can be elected? Former Labour MP Chris Williamson has joined them. I note RESPECT had a couple of OK second places in 2005 apart from Galloway’s win and various council seat wins over the years, including 5 in Bradford in 2012. I also note that RESPECT collapsed due to infighting, with Salma Yaqoob, the party’s most high profile other member, eventually turning on Galloway.
This was a vote against Netanyahu. It might sound strange but yesterday revulsion at the treatment of Gazans reached fever pitch (anyone seeing the footage would understand why) and Gorgous was the person most powerfully articulating the anger and impotence most people felt. This would have gone well beyond just Muslims. It was one of the most distressing sights I've seen. The Israelis action has moved way beyond security into outright barbarism.
No-one here gives a fuck about Netanyahu, except for a tiny and vocal minority in a handful of constituencies.
This was a vote against Netanyahu. It might sound strange but yesterday revulsion at the treatment of Gazans reached fever pitch (anyone seeing the footage would understand why) and Gorgous was the person most powerfully articulating the anger and impotence most people felt. This would have gone well beyond just Muslims. It was one of the most distressing sights I've seen. The Israelis action has moved way beyond security into outright barbarism.
No-one here gives a fuck about Netanyahu, except for a tiny and vocal minority in a handful of constituencies.
This was one.
You sometimes wave your insensitivity like a badge of honour. If you represent the mainstream Tory Party rather than just a fringe then I suspect the wipeout people are predicting will come to pass.
With hindsight it appears the early market lurch to Labour was based on absolutely fuck all. Also I note the runner up wasn't even listed as a runner !
Lib Dems won't be displeased after effectively sitting this one out and still beating Reform's much higher profile campaign. Not terrible for the Tories narrative wise too despite their dire vote share %
Reform despite holding their deposit will be miffed not to grab a second that was probably the most gettable second in BE history.
Of course the biggest issues from this BE aren't for any of the above but for Starmer.
Tully camp will be chuffed to bits with their performance. Should be able to do well in the locals if he wants to run himself and a few others off the back of this.
"Lib Dems won't be displeased"
Hmmm..... This was a LibDem seat until 2010. Piss-poor result for them.
Strange, isn't it? It's almost as though something happened in 2010 that destroyed the party.
Yes. They got power and realised that power meant compromises.
TBF, I think their main problems are nothing to do with 2010. It is that they are no longer the third party: the SNP are, which removes much of their parliamentary power. Another is that their leader might be a nice person, but he's not particularly good.
They sold their support for a mess of a referendum on changing the voting system.
I think they would have done far better to base the "red line" in the coalition negotiations squarely on policy principles - most important of all, to avoid breaking the personal signed pledges their candidates had given about how they would vote, if elected, on university tuition fees (notwithstanding the stupidity of that gimmick in the first place).
As it was, they were seen as staking it all on the AV referendum - not even a proportional system, unless by accident, but one that would tend to favour centre parties. And they lost that referendum by a mile anyway, so the sacrifice of principles was all for nothing.
A problem for the Lib Dems is that their candidates often offer contradictory things in differing constituencies - something they can do as long as they don't come anywhere near power.
The sad fact for the Lib Dems was that their post-2002 support was soft: a lot of voters who were fed up with Labour, partly because of Iraq, but had no great love for the Lib Dems. Their support was very soft.
And I think you're wrong about the 'signed pledges' thing: they were a minor member of a coalition, and could not get everything they wanted, and there was sure to be something that Labour could use against them. As it happens, given Labour's own hypocrisy over tuition fees a few years earlier, that was probably one of the safer ones to break. If they had played it well. But the truth was a heck of a lot of soft Lib Dem voters just did not want them in power with the Tories. IMO that's what broke them.
This was a vote against Netanyahu. It might sound strange but yesterday revulsion at the treatment of Gazans reached fever pitch (anyone seeing the footage would understand why) and Gorgous was the person most powerfully articulating the anger and impotence most people felt. This would have gone well beyond just Muslims. It was one of the most distressing sights I've seen. The Israelis action has moved way beyond security into outright barbarism.
No-one here gives a fuck about Netanyahu, except for a tiny and vocal minority in a handful of constituencies.
This was one.
You sometimes wave your insensitivity like a badge of honour. If you represent the mainstream Tory Party rather than just a fringe then I suspect the wipeout people are predicting will come to pass.
Comments
TBF, I think their main problems are nothing to do with 2010. It is that they are no longer the third party: the SNP are, which removes much of their parliamentary power. Another is that their leader might be a nice person, but he's not particularly good.
Not a good one for our Country's divisive politics and terrible when you compare and contrast to the late Tony Lloyd
Neither is this good news for Starmer both inside and outside the HOC as some of his seats must be under threat including Wes Streeting
As they say a week is a long time in politics
Galloway: best known for pretending to be a cat
He could not even get elected once, despite being leader of a party that was polling highly.
Farage = failure.
So Gorgeous McGeorgie returns to parliament ohce again, who'd have thought it.
We don’t even have the moral right to criticise Republicans any more.
Iran elections: Polls open in first elections since mass protests
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-68443248
Iran is another country where you have to wonder what is coming next. But as long as the Ayatollahs have the Revolutionary Guard they’re not likely going anywhere. More violence and intimidation would be my guess.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-68438582
His thing was to shout incoherently about how everything was someone else's fault, and when he gets what he wants and it's crummy, he still says it's someone else's fault.
When he joined UKIP they were a minor fringe party. Farage made them so successful they forced a referendum on the EU, then won the referendum - what compares with that?
Galloway is a tuppeny agitator in comparison
There are plenty of people who find SKS insipid, don’t like Labour, and want them to fail. All of which I understand and respect.
But George Galloway is not the answer.
She sounds robotic and every other word is ‘er’
She’s struggling a bit one of the poorest political interviews I’ve seen in a while. Her sister is a far more impressive performer.
@Cookie , I’ll send £5 to Alzheimer’s Research UK once I’ve had breakfast.
That makes him a very notable and successful politician, he will be a significant figure in the history of early 21st century Britain
Galloway will be a footnote
Of course, you may consider Brexit a grievous error, but that’s a different question
He's a one-man ego trip. And an even nastier human being then Farage, which is some achievement.
But just by being there spewing his anti-Semitic bile and 1950s cliches about class warfare and the role of women he's poison in our system.
My god, what a sprawling, chaotic, indulgent, farcical, emotionally inert mess. Great theme, interesting story, some fine actors: total turkey
I fear Scorsese has finally lost it
Galloway is filth.
They got what we wanted, and as a result... we have EUPhobia and bad governance...
That is Farage's legacy. A diminished, poorer, and more divided Britain. Trebles all round!
I overestimated the impact of postal votes. And I overestimated the inertia of the voters. I'd kinda assumed most of them voters would still choose between the traditional main parties, and didn't see so many picking one of the Independents.
Only 26.7% of the vote for the traditional main three parties, and only 34.4% of the vote for the five parties who dominate recent opinion polls.
NEW THREAD
Galloway is a cynical, and sometimes vaguely fanatical opportunist, but he was in the right place at the right time to help articulate a reaction, however compromised by prejudice his candidacies may be.
I think they would have done far better to base the "red line" in the coalition negotiations squarely on policy principles - most important of all, to avoid breaking the personal signed pledges their candidates had given about how they would vote, if elected, on university tuition fees (notwithstanding the stupidity of that gimmick in the first place).
As it was, they were seen as staking it all on the AV referendum - not even a proportional system, unless by accident, but one that would tend to favour centre parties. And they lost that referendum by a mile anyway, so the sacrifice of principles was all for nothing.
Does his Workers Party have anyone else in it who can be elected? Former Labour MP Chris Williamson has joined them. I note RESPECT had a couple of OK second places in 2005 apart from Galloway’s win and various council seat wins over the years, including 5 in Bradford in 2012. I also note that RESPECT collapsed due to infighting, with Salma Yaqoob, the party’s most high profile other member, eventually turning on Galloway.
This was one.
Galloway may be a prejudiced opportunist, but that doesn't mean that that's also not true.
But I suspect he prefers the current situation vs the UK being in the EU
He was also elected lots of times to the EU parliament.
He will be remembered in history, for good or ill. Galloway will not.
The sad fact for the Lib Dems was that their post-2002 support was soft: a lot of voters who were fed up with Labour, partly because of Iraq, but had no great love for the Lib Dems. Their support was very soft.
And I think you're wrong about the 'signed pledges' thing: they were a minor member of a coalition, and could not get everything they wanted, and there was sure to be something that Labour could use against them. As it happens, given Labour's own hypocrisy over tuition fees a few years earlier, that was probably one of the safer ones to break. If they had played it well. But the truth was a heck of a lot of soft Lib Dem voters just did not want them in power with the Tories. IMO that's what broke them.