Nationalist Nigel Farage officially launched his British legislative campaign on Tuesday, hours before the first televised debate between the Conservative prime minister Rishi Sunak the Labor leader Keir Starmer.
Nigel Farage (60) explained to the applause of 500 supporters gathered in Clacton-on-Sea (south-east), where he ran, that he wants to lead a “people’s army against the establishment”.
Revolt. Monday, this close Donald Trump made the biggest surprise of the campaign for the elections scheduled for July 4 by announcing that he was taking over the leadership of the Reform UK party and that he would run under that label in the parliamentary elections, in order to “lead a rebellion against the status quo” in a country “in which nothing works anymore”.
This is the eighth time that this joking tribune, a member of the European Parliament for more than 20 years, a “Brexiter” who emphasizes his patriotism, is trying to become a member of the House of Commons. To this day, his party has no place there.
The candidacy is even worse news for Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, who heads a divided Conservative Party, exhausted from 14 years in power and which Farage intends to further divide.
According to a YouGov poll published on Monday, the Labor Party could claim its biggest victory in its history on July 4, far bigger than Tony Blair’s in 1997.
Conservative Party stalwarts such as Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt and Defense Secretary Grant Shapps could lose their seats.
Mr Sunak, 44, who arrived in Downing Street in October 2022, travels the country in all directions and claims he is the only one with a “plan”.
It multiplies the announced effects, such as, for example, the intention to return to the form of mandatory military service.
He has carefully prepared for the debate, and on Tuesday night he will put all his energy into trying to close the gap with Labour.
Labour’s Keir Starmer, 61, remains cautious, careful not to jeopardize his party’s lead in the polls, more than 20 points ahead of the Conservatives.
He claims it is time for “change”, after five Conservative prime ministers.
Broadcast at 9 pm on the private channel ITV, the debate between the two is expected to last an hour. They will debate again at the end of June, a week before the vote.
Other televised debates between officials of the main parties in the campaign are also planned.
Lively discussion? In recent days both Rishi Sunak and Keir Starmer have said they want to reduce immigration.
On Tuesday, the Conservatives announced their intention to set a new annual cap on visas to reduce immigration each year.
Nigel Farage told him he wanted “zero” immigration.
According to political commentators, during the debate we should expect muscular exchanges between two completely opposite milieus, with the Prime Minister, a former millionaire investment banker, and the Labor leader, a former lawyer and judge, from a humble background.
Rishi Sunak regularly accuses his opponent of lacking conviction and multiplying reversals. Starmer criticizes the chaos he believes the Conservatives have created.
Will the criticism turn into personal attacks, on Rishi Sunak’s past as a banker or on old cases handled by lawyer, then prosecutor, Keir Starmer?
The two could already test their projections in front of the parliament, where they face each other every Wednesday.