After the Conservatives suffered huge blows, losing two seats to Labour in Wellingborough and Kingswood, a surprising, record-breaking amount of votes were received by the right-wing party Reform UK.
Reform UK Emerges as a Significant Force
Reform UK, under the leadership of Richard Tice, has achieved a shock success in recent by-elections in Wellingborough and Kingswood.
The party’s leader, Richard Tice, expressed his delight at the groundbreaking result, declaring them as “defining moments,” and called the party a “significant force.”
The huge defeat from the Conservative Party by Labour is another significant blow to the Tories as they gear up for the impending general election.
A Pivotal Turning Point for Reform UK
Securing 13% of the votes in Wellingborough and 10% in Kingswood, Reform UK shows it’s not messing around. The result was the party’s largest-ever amount of votes since claiming 6.6% in the Old Bexley and Sidcup by-election in 2021.
Tice said, “We’re delighted, we’re the party on the up and it’s quite clear that more and more people are looking for something different.”
“I’ll be unveiling our election contract which will be setting out how we need to reorganize, manage and run the UK economy and nation,” Tice followed.
“You can’t grow an economy with the burdens of record high taxes, record high wasteful government spending, nanny state regulations, mass low skilled immigration and the multi-trillion cost of net zero,” Tice said, referencing the Conservative’s recent failures.
A Long Way to go
Reform UK, which is a reincarnation of the Brexit Party, may have experienced its best results yet, but it has a long way to go before surpassing the Brexit Party’s huge 29% record in Peterborough in 2019.
Ben Habib, co-deputy leader of Reform UK, promised, “I am going to stand here again and we are going to take the fight to these parties,” and insisted, “We’re going to do much better in the general election.”
A Back Door Entry for Sir Keir Starmer?
Tory MPs expressed concerns that the rise of the Right-wing party could jeopardize Conservative positions, potentially paving the way for Sir Keir Starmer to enter No 10.
Professor John Curtis said, “Reform UK have now entered the electoral battle in a serious way and that potentially adds to the Conservatives’ difficulties so far as their chances of hanging on to seats at the next general election.”
“Finally we are seeing Reform performing in by-elections in a way that they’re doing in opinion polls.” Curtis admitted.
Peter Bone’s Bullying Accusations
The Conservatives experienced a tumultuous week as MP Peter Bone triggered the Wellingborough by-election after being recalled due to accusations of bullying and harassment.
The Kingswood by-election was triggered after the resignation of Chris Skidmore, who disagreed with Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s green policies.
Reform secured 10% of the vote in Kingswood despite Richard Tice admitting it was “not our type of seat.”
Labour Leader Sees Potential Shift
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer said, “The Tories have failed. Rishi’s recession proves that. That’s why we’ve seen so many former Conservative voters switching directly to this changed Labour Party.”
Starmer insisted that “People want change and are ready to put their faith in a changed Labour Party to deliver it,” anticipating a landslide victory in the upcoming general election.
Poll Predicts Sunak’s Woes
In a recent poll, only 37% of those who voted Conservative in 2019 said they would vote for Rishi Sunak as Prime Minister if a general election was called today.
With the Conservatives becoming increasingly unpopular in the polls, Reform UK seem to believe they can cause serious disruption in the general election later this year.
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The post Far-Right Shift: Reform UK Receives Record-Breaking Votes in By-Elections first appeared on Edge Media.
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