Make Britain Great Again

[woody1]

Labour could easily get a similar result next time.

Especially if the Tories do a kneejerk to the right. They might capture some of those who voted Reform but they'd probably lose as much, if not more, support from the centre ground, where elections are normally won or lost in this country.

It will be inneresting to see who they choose as leader. If history is anything to go by, probably a no-hoper.

[Fraidycat]

Less so for your credibility

Reform underperformed in many ways. Votes only marginally up on UKIP. As predicted, a handful of seats. On the upside, their main effect was to smash the Tories.

For Labour, that has to be the most unconvincing landslide ever, only 35% of the vote. However, the Tories have a needle to thread with Reform on the right and electoral success in the centre. Labour could easily get a similar result next time.

Hold on to your hats, I predict the next four years will be dire, although perhaps more professionally dire than the Tories.

Yeah the Exit polls got my hopes up.

Was able to exit my bet on BetFair at break even quite easily, the odds moved quite slowly from my favour to break even then negative over several hours.

Labour: 9,660,081
Tories: 6,755,953
Reform: 4,072,947

It wasn't the worst night for Reform.

Labour got a massive seat majority but Starmer got less votes than Corbyn did in 2019.

The Tories lost almost 8 million votes.

Im not sure how many of those 4million Reform votes would have voted Tory, as personally, i would have just stayed at home myself had Farage not entered the fray.

Reform needs to target marginal seats where they came second, it could see them winning 50+ seats next time.

[northernladuk]

Reform PLC got exactly what they deserved and will have absolutely zero influence on anything.!

Not sure you've got that right. You could argue they didn't deserve to get any votes or seats which might mean your comment would be valid but they got some seats came second and third in a good majority of constituencies. Are you saying they deserved so many votes and those seats? I don't think you are.

Agreed on zero influence which was totally expected thankfully but you can't go round saying they got what they deserved when when what they got wasn't bad. Your comment could almost be construed as a positive thing.

[WTFH]

I see Mrs Sunak was wearing a dress that looked like a US flag during his resignation. Are they at Heathrow yet?

[woody1]

Im not sure how many of those 4million Reform votes would have voted Tory, as personally, i would have just stayed at home myself had Farage not entered the fray.

Yeah, the Tories would be naive to think they could count on these voters if they lurched to the right.

[malvolio]

Not sure you've got that right. You could argue they didn't deserve to get any votes or seats which might mean your comment would be valid but they got some seats came second and third in a good majority of constituencies. Are you saying they deserved so many votes and those seats? I don't think you are.

Agreed on zero influence which was totally expected thankfully but you can't go round saying they got what they deserved when when what they got wasn't bad. Your comment could almost be construed as a positive thing.

A group of candidates with no recognisable party structure (Reform is essentially a private company owned by Farage) with a few please-the-public soundbites for a manifesto and no chance of enacting even those? They got votes on the basis that they are neither Tory nor Labour.

Then again, UK elections are largely driven by people voting for or against one or two high profile people, not for a manifesto. In this case, Sunak/Hunt, Starmer/Reeves and Farage/Farage. Quality of candidate is a long way down the list.

[Marmite]

No system is perfect and they all have flaws - but crazy that reform got more votes than Lib Dems.
Reform got 4 seats - Lib Dems 71.

[northernladuk]

A group of candidates with no recognisable party structure (Reform is essentially a private company owned by Farage) with a few please-the-public soundbites for a manifesto and no chance of enacting even those? They got votes on the basis that they are neither Tory nor Labour.

I'd agree with most of that but not the Tory nor Labour comment. I'd argue most of their votes are from people angry about immigration. There was some stat that in one consitiuency 70% of people that voted for reform also voted brexit. So they are voting for an agenda, not because they are not Tory or Labour. To think that I think is a bad mistake. Europe has lurched to the right and we are behind but are we going to catch up, is this going to grow. Agentzero posted a very strange post about not understanding why people are voting for reform which I think is incredibly naive. There is a growing trend to vote right which is clearly demonstrated in many places in Europe so to show the lack of understanding Agentzero did, and just write them off as a random vote because people didn't like the two main options is a best naive. It's something that (IMO) is going to keep growning until it's a real problem so to ignore/dismiss it for the wrong reasons now won't be helpful in the long run.

Then again, UK elections are largely driven by people voting for or against one or two high profile people, not for a manifesto. In this case, Sunak/Hunt, Starmer/Reeves and Farage/Farage. Quality of candidate is a long way down the list.

Agreed but they've got in in parts of Europe so no to be discounted and ignored at our peril.

This article is an eye opener. The number of countries with a far right goverment and even down to coming second in polls is an eye opener. I bet everyone was discounting these parties as a protest vote a couple of years ago as well.

https://www.politico.eu/article/mapp...tions-polling/

I can't help thinking we are on a slipper slope to the same unless the main governments start to listen and start including policy that the popular is starting to want. Reform have it right to start picking on the Labour voters. Remember there will be a lot of them that agree with some of the message from Reform but voted for a competent party instead. If Labour don't sate these peoples needs they'll be over to reform in a shot.

I'm not defending Reform and all that.. I just don't think it's smart dismissing them or washing them over with incorrect statements.

And Marmite has just posted a comment to consider while I was writing this. Reform got more than LibDem so if anything does change with voting the situation is going to look very different in a hearbeat.

[SueEllen]

Farage needs to stop acting like Galloway and take his stance from Lee Anderson.

This means cut down on the "events" where only the media and protesters attend, and do you work for you constituents.

[edison]

Didn't realise you were a Reform voter.

I'm not, I wouldn't vote for them in a million years.