‘Is he worse than any of the others?’: Britain’s most divisive man hits the seaside

Eight years ago, this British seaside village in Essex, the butt of endless jokes and often referred to as the UK’s worst resort town, posted one of the highest “leave” votes in the 2016 Brexit referendum.

After three weeks of intense media coverage, people here on a sunny morning when this reporter arrives, don’t feel too much like talking politics. Since he announced his candidacy three weeks ago, Farage’s numbers have soared and has even outperformed all other parties and candidates on TikTok, eclipsing politicians previously considered most popular among young people.Narrowing in on an apathetic generation, Farage has also appeared on podcasts aimed at young men and created videos showing him mouthing Eminem lyrics.

Clacton is also the only place in Britain ever to have elected a member of Farage’s previous parties, UKIP at a general election, when the Tory defector Douglas Carswell was re-elected in 2015.Advertisement Former prime minister Boris Johnson, once a friendly ally of the fellow Brexiteer, was the chief attack dog, dismissing Farage’s argument as “nauseating ahistorical drivel and more Kremlin propaganda.”

Net migration to the UK dropped 10 per cent to 685,000 in 2023, compared with a year earlier, but remained above average historical levels. The majority of people travelled for work or to study, with far fewer, a number of 29,437 last year, arriving via the perilous journey across the Channel from France.But migration is a central issue for voters across the political spectrum, especially after the Conservatives failed on their promise to “stop the boats” and deport illegal migrants to Rwanda.

More than a quarter simply would not vote in this election in a scenario where Reform UK was not fielding a candidate for their seat.

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