As results still come in it is clear that the two leading UK parties have taken a severe hammering in local elections around the UK.  Though these campaigns are not generally fought on national issues such as Brexit, voters have taken the opportunity to punish the two party monopoly.

Polls and people on the street in the UK, speaking to both the public and party activists, as well as former leaders who have now lost their seats all agree on one thing.  This was not a failure at local level.  This was a systemic failure in British Democracy.  ”Leave” or ”Remain”, everyone is sick of the failure in the Houses of Parliament.   Many agree that democracy is more important than the issue of Brexit itself.  Which has led to both parties taking a pounding from angry voters.  The conservatives alone, lost over 400 seats and control of many local councils. Labour also seem to have been punished for their failure to support democracy, though the exact number of seats lost, is still to be calculated but is believed to be between 80-100.  Counting in Northern Island will only take place this morning.

Usually, when the conservatives do badly, labour gains, and vice versa in the British zero sum game of politics.  We get one brand of vested interests from either side of the monopoly, no matter how we vote. Globalists, usually, always win.  Not anymore.  This is a bigger shift than it may first appear.

However, worse for democracy, there are strong rumours of record numbers of spoilt ballots with voters refusing to vote for anyone and registering their anger by defacing the paper.  Meaning, that they feel totally unrepresented by anyone in politics.   People are realising that democracy itself is under threat and that the Westminster bubble do not really care how they vote and they are just beggining to push back. 

So who are the beneficiaries?  This is a broad base.  With UKIP represented in only 1 in 6 areas, voters chose to vote for anyone BUT the two leading parties.  The Green Party, the Lib Dem’s, and independents all reaped the rewards of Parliamentary incompetence.  The most common comments from voters at the polling stations ”I dont trust any of them”, and words to that effect were common in many interviews.

The sad situation is that people are voting for ANYONE but the leading parties.  However, many are voting for candidates they do not either know much about, or even, necessarily agree with.  They are simply so angry with the leading parties that they chose another, anyone but them. A quote from one voter outside a polling station yesterday summed it up. ‘I am looking for the most outrageous choice, the most extreme person I can find on the list,  I dont trust anything they say'(sic).  This indicates a fundamental problem with democracy in Britain.  As has been suggested by many polls to this point, UK citizens no longer have democratic representation in Parliament or a candidate to vote for, which truly represents their views. 

This is a crisis.  That is not democracy.

However, local elections, though tainted by Westminster’s failure, are likely to be but a shadow of what we can expect in more directly Brexit related European Elections.  The EU should be breaking out the sandbags.  These elections were the sea pulling far back out, before the big wave arrives.  A Euro sceptic tsunami is about to cross the channel.  Local and EU parliament be warned.  Brits will never be slaves.  One way or another, they will take these blessed isles back.