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Nigel Farage: Town halls are key to UKIP surge
The Guardian ^ | July 28, 2013 | Nicholas Watt, chief political correspondent

Posted on 07/28/2013 2:41:12 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet

Nigel Farage has pledged to follow the example of Paddy Ashdown and to establish "clusters of councillors" around the country elected on the challenging first-past-the-post system as a first step to winning parliamentary seats at future general elections.

In a Guardian interview, the Ukip leader said people would vote for the "real thing" on Europe and immigration rather than support David Cameron who is occupying "our turf" under the influence of the Tory strategist Lynton Crosby.

Farage admitted that his party is experiencing something of a "lull" but insisted that it was on course to win next year's European parliamentary elections and to deepen its presence in council chambers.

Ukip has seen its support drop in recent months after a breakthrough in the English local elections in May when it won 23% of the vote. A Guardian/ICM poll earlier this month placed Ukip on 7%, compared with 18% shortly after the local election results, with most of its support shifting to the Conservatives.....

(Excerpt) Read more at guardian.co.uk ...


TOPICS: Foreign Affairs; Government; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections; United Kingdom
KEYWORDS: britain; davidcameron; economy; immigration; liberaldemocrats; lyntoncrosby; nickclegg; nigelfarage; paddyashdown; ukip; unitedkingdom

1 posted on 07/28/2013 2:41:12 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

Maybe this is how we launch a Freedom Party?


2 posted on 07/28/2013 2:56:09 PM PDT by GeronL
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To: GeronL

I’m in.


3 posted on 07/28/2013 2:58:26 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet (I aim to raise a million plus for Gov. Palin. What'll you do?.)
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To: AdmSmith; AnonymousConservative; Berosus; bigheadfred; Bockscar; cardinal4; ColdOne; ...

Thanks 2ndDivisionVet.
Farage admitted that his party is experiencing something of a "lull" but insisted that it was on course to win next year's European parliamentary elections and to deepen its presence in council chambers. Ukip has seen its support drop in recent months after a breakthrough in the English local elections in May when it won 23% of the vote.
Cameron's pushing gay 'marriage', and Farage is still talking about EU membership and immigration -- i.e., I think UKIP has peaked.


4 posted on 07/28/2013 6:10:29 PM PDT by SunkenCiv (It's no coincidence that some "conservatives" echo the hard left.)
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To: SunkenCiv

The battle isn’t done. I believe UKIP will be back with a vengence in the next few years as things in Europe slide to the right. The Liberals have gone too far.


5 posted on 07/28/2013 11:57:09 PM PDT by Forward the Light Brigade (Into the Jaws of H*ll)
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To: Forward the Light Brigade

They got 23% of the most recent vote, and it pulled straight out of both major parties, apparently piecemeal (Tory seat here, Labour seat there), without much in the way of seats gained. They crowed about their showing, but in private meetings they headed back to the drawing board.

In order to make some headway, they’ll have to hammer out a middle ground — economic conservatism (as conservative as anyone gets in the UK polity) to attack Labour, and social conservatism (oppose Cameron’s gay ‘marriage’; hammer on ‘immigration’ so that everyone knows they’re really talking about muzzies) to hammer on the Tories *and* Labour.

Their strategy of winning the EU parliament seats may be a sound one, but if that’s their only grip on power, guess what will happen to their motivation for getting the UK out of the EU?

If UKIP can tip enough seats their way, Cameron (or Labour) will eventually have to take them into the coalition, and that will be make or break for them.


6 posted on 07/29/2013 2:57:34 PM PDT by SunkenCiv (It's no coincidence that some "conservatives" echo the hard left.)
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Ukip vote cost Conservatives hundreds of council seats, analysis reveals
http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2013/may/03/ukip-vote-conservatives-seats-analysis
In many seats taken by Lib Dem, Labour or independent candidates, combined Ukip and Tory vote would have won

Local elections 2013: Nigel Farage’s Ukip surges to best ever showing, winning 150 seats
The UK Independence Party has achieved its best showing at the polls yet by winning almost 150 seats in the council elections.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/ukip/10036463/Local-elections-2013-Nigel-Farages-Ukip-surges-to-best-ever-showing-winning-150-seats.html

UKIP to win 8 Tory seats
Four ministers ‘set to lose in 2015 poll’
Exclusive
By DAVID WOODING
Published: 12th May 2013
NIGEL Farage is on the brink of delivering EIGHT UKIP MPs at the next election.
http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/politics/4924195/UKIP-to-win-8-Tory-seats-at-the-next-General-Election-in-2015.html


7 posted on 07/29/2013 3:20:23 PM PDT by SunkenCiv (It's no coincidence that some "conservatives" echo the hard left.)
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