On the eve of the Clacton by-election, Count Binface has already accomplished what he set out to do, which is to help demolish Farage's credibility with the general UK public, and to get more people engaging with politics and actually thinking about the policymakers who influence their lives, communities and wellbeing.
For those not familiar with UK politics, the tradition of "novelty" candidates who tend to stand in these high-profile by elections is hardly ever motivated by wanting to become an MP. Instead, most of them are trying to bring attention to something they care about. The guy under the bin (Jon Harvey) is an astute comedy writer and classicist who has shown he truly understands the intersection of politics and culture, better than any number of mid-tier, self-interested, mouth-breathing pollies. (Has anyone watched his argument in favour of Athenian values at the Cambridge Union? He'd be GOLD during question time.)
The majority of the people in Clacton are part of very vulnerable groups: elderly, disabled, dependent on welfare, deprived of solid education and therefore easy targets for grifters like Farage. In the 2024 election, he only chose this constituency to run in because he knew that he could con its population of poor and working class white boomers by selling them the same old Brexitish right-wing populist claptrap about immigrants and refugees. What is truly despicable is that Farage, typical of right-wing populists, opposes support and funding for the NHS and similar public welfare schemes, which the vulnerable people of Clacton depend on for their very survival.
Farage enables people's worst impulses and paranoias to get them to act against their own best interests for his own distended, toxic ego.
(The positively vile Pauline Hanson is doing the same thing in my own country.)
As Binface has said, Farage may only win this by-election numerically. But I for one have been heartened by all the videos posted by punters visiting Clacton and interviewing the locals. I have watched these punters patiently explain the above to many elderly folks who are sworn Reform loyalists, and I see the cogs begin to grind behind their eyes. One old lady immediately said out loud: "I'll have to think about this." Ultimately, we have Binface to thank as the inspiration for this.
Furthermore, the virality of Binface, capturing the hearts of the larger UK (and international) public, feels like a very large nail in the coffin of Farage's aspiration to be PM.
TLDR, don't be disheartened if Binface doesn't actually win (which he probably won't, as awesome as that would be). That was never the point - he's already triumphed.
(PS, on the subject of the PM, Burnham is not perfect - I'm not thrilled about his lukewarm attitudes on trans people (hopefully he can be talked around???), but he's miles ahead of Farage in terms of engaged and competent governance. Here's hoping he doesn't follow in Starmer's footsteps. Burham's called himself a socialist, I hope he can walk the walk. He does gain a few points in my eyes for publicly endorsing Binface)
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