Nigel Farage, the leader of the anti-EU party UKIP, has today said that UKIP have overtaken the Liberal Democrats as the third party of British politics as they made gains in today's local elections.
34 counties in England are holding elections today, and so, too, is the Isle of Anglesey in Wales
So far, with only a tiny fraction of the votes having yet been counted, UKIP have gained 42 seats on various English county councils, and stand to gain many more. This is compared to the last time these elections were held in 2009 when they got no councillors at all. This is a sure sign that the electorate in England are moving to the right and have not been phased whatsoever by the smear campaign conducted against UKIP by the British Establishment media in recent days.
UKIP leader Nigel Farage is set for a good result in the English council elections
But whereas UKIP have 42 councillors so far, a gain of 42 so far, the Tories have 201 councillors so far, a LOSS of 66 so far, with many of those votes probably going to UKIP; Labour have so far gained 30 councillors with a total of 42 so far (the same as UKIP have at the moment) and the LibDems, who finished second behind the Conservatives in 2009, have so far lost 15 councillors, with a total of 73 so far. The Green Party so far has three councillors, a gain of 2 and all other parties so far have 22 councillors, a gain of seven.
UKIP became the second largest party in Lincolnshire, winning 16 seats and depriving Conservatives of overall control. So far, UKIP have cost the Conservatives control of two councils.
In the South Shields by-election, which was also held yesterday because its MP, former Labour Foreign Secretary David Miliband, stepped down for a new job in New York, UKIP finished second. Their candidate, Richard Elvin, got 5,988 votes. They pushed the Tories (2,857 votes) into third place, but Labour's Emma Lewell-Buck romped home with 12,493 votes and a large majority in a seat they have held since 1935, although even Labour had a bit of bad news in the fact that it is still a majority that is only half what it was in 2010. The pro-EU Liberal Democrats finished SEVENTH with just 352 votes - their worst performance in a by-election since World War II - and even finished behind the BNP and the Independent Socialist Party.
UKIP got 25% of the votes in South Shields, the largest gain of any new party in British political history.
SOUTH SHIELDS BY-ELECTION - THE RESULT
Emma Lewell-Buck (Lab) 12,493
Richard Elvin (UKIP) 5,988
Karen Allen (Conservative) 2,857
Ahmed Khan (Ind) 1,331
Phil Brown (Ind Soc) 750
Lady Dorothy MacBeth Brookes (BNP) 711
Hugh Annand (LD) 352
Howling Laud Hope (Monster Raving Loony Party) 197
Thomas Darwood (Ind) 57
Electorate: 62,979 Turnout: 24,736 (39.28%)
UKIP candidate Richard Elvin polled almost 6,000 votes, halving the Labour majority to only 5,000
South Shields is not the first time in recent months that UKIP have done well in a by-election in Northern England. They also finished second in Rotherham - just after the Labour-run town council deprived a couple of adopting a child just because they were UKIP supporters - and Middlesbrough, which has led to UKIP leader Nigel Farage calling his party "the Tory Party of the North".
Pro-EU Tory minister Ken Clarke last week branded UKIP’s politicians 'clowns' and some supporters racist.
But a delighted Mr Farage hit back, joking: 'Send in the clowns.'
He said a week of attacks on his candidates had failed to put people off backing his party.
'We’ve been abused by everybody, attacked by the entire establishment, who did their best to stop ordinary decent people from going out and voting UKIP and they have done in big, big numbers,' he told Sky News.
'At the end of today we are going to have a fair tally and it sends a shockwave, I think, through the establishment.'
UKIP also picked up 10 seats in Hampshire, nine in Essex, three in Gloucestershire, three in Somerset and one in Dorset.
With seven council results in out of 34, the Tories are down 66 seats, with most switching to UKIP who have 42 new councillors
Mr Farage said: ‘It's been a remarkable result for us. Numerically we're the third [party] because the Lib Dems are trailing behind.
‘We have always done well in European elections... but people haven't seen us as being relevant to local elections or in some ways general elections.
‘So for us to be scoring, on average, 26 per cent of the vote where we stand is I think very significant indeed.’
A raft of bad publicity in recent days, including embarrassing revelations about UKIP candidates and policies which do not add up, seems to have done little to damage the party’s appeal.
Mr Farage added: ‘This wave of protest certainly isn't short-term - it's lasting.’
The results lead to immediate calls from Tory MPs for David Cameron to take a tougher line on Europe and immigration in a bid to stem losses to UKIP.
The Prime Minister's promise of a referendum on Britain's membership of the European Union (if the Tories win the next General Election in 2015) appears to have done little to persuade voters not to switch support to Mr Farage's party.
"Who are these Right-wing extremists pushing@David_Cameron towards an EU referendum? The British people, that's who!"
Anti-EU Conservative Member of the European Parliament Daniel Hannan
HOW UKIP's COUNCIL GAINS STACK UP ACROSS ENGLAND SO FAR
Lincolnshire: 16
Hampshire: 10
Essex: 9
Gloucestershire: 3
Somerset: 3
Dorset: 1
Winners: In Essex UKIP won nine seats on the county council, including three wards in the Basildon and Wickford districts taken by (left to right) Mark Ellis, Kerry Smith and Nigel Le Gresley
UKIP supporters celebrate after Colin Guyton (second right) wins a seat on Gloucestershire County Council
Mr Farage said the 'wave of protest' sweeping the country was long-lasting and predicted a UKIP MP in a marginal seat
Read more: UKIP on the march: Nigel Farage hails 'wave of protest' sweeping the country as his party makes big gains in council elections | Mail Online
34 counties in England are holding elections today, and so, too, is the Isle of Anglesey in Wales
So far, with only a tiny fraction of the votes having yet been counted, UKIP have gained 42 seats on various English county councils, and stand to gain many more. This is compared to the last time these elections were held in 2009 when they got no councillors at all. This is a sure sign that the electorate in England are moving to the right and have not been phased whatsoever by the smear campaign conducted against UKIP by the British Establishment media in recent days.
UKIP leader Nigel Farage is set for a good result in the English council elections
But whereas UKIP have 42 councillors so far, a gain of 42 so far, the Tories have 201 councillors so far, a LOSS of 66 so far, with many of those votes probably going to UKIP; Labour have so far gained 30 councillors with a total of 42 so far (the same as UKIP have at the moment) and the LibDems, who finished second behind the Conservatives in 2009, have so far lost 15 councillors, with a total of 73 so far. The Green Party so far has three councillors, a gain of 2 and all other parties so far have 22 councillors, a gain of seven.
UKIP became the second largest party in Lincolnshire, winning 16 seats and depriving Conservatives of overall control. So far, UKIP have cost the Conservatives control of two councils.
In the South Shields by-election, which was also held yesterday because its MP, former Labour Foreign Secretary David Miliband, stepped down for a new job in New York, UKIP finished second. Their candidate, Richard Elvin, got 5,988 votes. They pushed the Tories (2,857 votes) into third place, but Labour's Emma Lewell-Buck romped home with 12,493 votes and a large majority in a seat they have held since 1935, although even Labour had a bit of bad news in the fact that it is still a majority that is only half what it was in 2010. The pro-EU Liberal Democrats finished SEVENTH with just 352 votes - their worst performance in a by-election since World War II - and even finished behind the BNP and the Independent Socialist Party.
UKIP got 25% of the votes in South Shields, the largest gain of any new party in British political history.
SOUTH SHIELDS BY-ELECTION - THE RESULT
Emma Lewell-Buck (Lab) 12,493
Richard Elvin (UKIP) 5,988
Karen Allen (Conservative) 2,857
Ahmed Khan (Ind) 1,331
Phil Brown (Ind Soc) 750
Lady Dorothy MacBeth Brookes (BNP) 711
Hugh Annand (LD) 352
Howling Laud Hope (Monster Raving Loony Party) 197
Thomas Darwood (Ind) 57
Electorate: 62,979 Turnout: 24,736 (39.28%)
UKIP candidate Richard Elvin polled almost 6,000 votes, halving the Labour majority to only 5,000
South Shields is not the first time in recent months that UKIP have done well in a by-election in Northern England. They also finished second in Rotherham - just after the Labour-run town council deprived a couple of adopting a child just because they were UKIP supporters - and Middlesbrough, which has led to UKIP leader Nigel Farage calling his party "the Tory Party of the North".
Pro-EU Tory minister Ken Clarke last week branded UKIP’s politicians 'clowns' and some supporters racist.
But a delighted Mr Farage hit back, joking: 'Send in the clowns.'
He said a week of attacks on his candidates had failed to put people off backing his party.
'We’ve been abused by everybody, attacked by the entire establishment, who did their best to stop ordinary decent people from going out and voting UKIP and they have done in big, big numbers,' he told Sky News.
'At the end of today we are going to have a fair tally and it sends a shockwave, I think, through the establishment.'
UKIP also picked up 10 seats in Hampshire, nine in Essex, three in Gloucestershire, three in Somerset and one in Dorset.
With seven council results in out of 34, the Tories are down 66 seats, with most switching to UKIP who have 42 new councillors
Mr Farage said: ‘It's been a remarkable result for us. Numerically we're the third [party] because the Lib Dems are trailing behind.
‘We have always done well in European elections... but people haven't seen us as being relevant to local elections or in some ways general elections.
‘So for us to be scoring, on average, 26 per cent of the vote where we stand is I think very significant indeed.’
A raft of bad publicity in recent days, including embarrassing revelations about UKIP candidates and policies which do not add up, seems to have done little to damage the party’s appeal.
Mr Farage added: ‘This wave of protest certainly isn't short-term - it's lasting.’
The results lead to immediate calls from Tory MPs for David Cameron to take a tougher line on Europe and immigration in a bid to stem losses to UKIP.
The Prime Minister's promise of a referendum on Britain's membership of the European Union (if the Tories win the next General Election in 2015) appears to have done little to persuade voters not to switch support to Mr Farage's party.
"Who are these Right-wing extremists pushing@David_Cameron towards an EU referendum? The British people, that's who!"
Anti-EU Conservative Member of the European Parliament Daniel Hannan
HOW UKIP's COUNCIL GAINS STACK UP ACROSS ENGLAND SO FAR
Lincolnshire: 16
Hampshire: 10
Essex: 9
Gloucestershire: 3
Somerset: 3
Dorset: 1
Winners: In Essex UKIP won nine seats on the county council, including three wards in the Basildon and Wickford districts taken by (left to right) Mark Ellis, Kerry Smith and Nigel Le Gresley
UKIP supporters celebrate after Colin Guyton (second right) wins a seat on Gloucestershire County Council
Mr Farage said the 'wave of protest' sweeping the country was long-lasting and predicted a UKIP MP in a marginal seat
Read more: UKIP on the march: Nigel Farage hails 'wave of protest' sweeping the country as his party makes big gains in council elections | Mail Online
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