Whatever the outcome of the post-election horsetrading now in full swing between Lib Dems and the two other major parties, there were some election results that deserve to be celebrated. First of all there were the utter defeat of the two extreme, sectarian parties of the BNP and Respect.
BNP Smashed!
Not only did the BNP fail to elect Nick Griffin or Simon Darby to Parliament, they also failed to take any council seats in Barking & Dagenham and Stoke-on-Trent. The BNP also lost their seats in Wigan, Oldham, Manchester and Leeds City Council.
Galloway and the sectarian RESPECT Coalition project Smashed!
George Galloway came third in Poplar and Limehouse and lost his seat to Jim Fitzpatrick, Minister of Farming. Clive Searl of the Respect Party explain why Galloway and the Respect Party fared so miserably on Socialist Unity:
But there is no hiding from reality. The 2010 General Election was not a good day for Respect. We had hoped to add to our single MP, two more in Abjol Miah and Salma Yaqoob. Instead we are reduced to none. Electoral politics is a brutal game – and where you can win elections you can just as easily lose them. Everyone will naturally be disappointed. It appears that our core vote has been swamped by the huge increase in turnout.
That’s right. High voter turnouts are poison for extremist fringe parties. The high turnout is exactly the same reason why the BNP was trounced.
The lesson that both the BNP and Respect may have learned as a result of their poor results is that superficial difference in ethnicity and religion are not the factors binds society together here in Britain. People coalesce politically and project their hopes and aspiration in the public space on the back of a huge number of issues, not by tokens of racial and religious supremacy alone. Failure to understand this has been the downfall of BNP and Respect alike.
The crushing defeats of the BNP, Respect as well as UKIP are reasons to celebrate last week’s elections, whatever the outcome of the post-hung parliament negotiations.
6 Comments
Unfortunately, Dr Evan Harris, a beacon for rational secularists everywhere lost his seat to a woman who has made it her mission statement to stand up for the rights of Christians everywhere. Sadly, there aren’t only islands of religious extremism in East London.
Sadly true, Baal. Evan Harris was an excellent MP.
“But there is no hiding from reality. The 2010 General Election was not a good day for Respect. We had hoped to add to our single MP, two more in Abjol Miah and Salma Yaqoob. Instead we are reduced to none. Electoral politics is a brutal game – and where you can win elections you can just as easily lose them. Everyone will naturally be disappointed. It appears that our core vote has been swamped by the huge increase in turnout.
I would like to thank Clive Searl for the most humerous quote of this extremely depressing election.
The Muslim community effort to encourage Muslim engagement should also be celebrated, http://www.youelect.org.uk, http://www.getoutandvote.info, http://www.muslimvote.org.uk …amazing campaigns, many hustings, Muslims are becoming much more politically savy. Which I am sure the Munafiqoon would agree is a good thing
And I am sure even khuyain like you be supporting Muslims like Rushanara Ali.
Difference in ethnicity or religion does sometimes matter. In BG&B all the parties Labour, Conservative, Respect, Lib Dem and Greens were all from Sylheti Bangali background.
we voted partly for Rushonara Ali becouse she was from our ethnic background and partly because Labour is our natural party for support.
We had to be a bit communal otherwise no way a Bangali would be an MP in the UK.