Mixed views on Nigel Farage
Much like elsewhere in the country, views on the Reform leader in Clacton are split, ranging from complete devotion – with one participant saying she “hopes and prays” that he’ll win the by-election – to anger and rejection, while some voters feel torn.
Fans liked that Farage shows his face locally and says what he thinks. Critics pointed to his attendance record and the time he spends abroad.
“He comes here whenever he can. He shows his face. He never puts on any airs or graces. He acts just like all of us, and he likes his pint of beer, as we all know. I love him to bits and I love what he stands for. I just hope and pray that he gets in.”
Brenda, retired
“To be honest, I’m not a fan. I found him to be somewhat absent. He’s here when he wants votes… he’s pocketing 95 grand a year for that job — his attendance record would get him a chat with HR if he worked anywhere else.”
Lewis, IT engineer
“I must admit I am a fan of his. I do like what he stands for. I think he’s obviously put Clacton on the map more than it had been before.”
Colin, retired
“He’s very human. He’s down to earth. He says it as it is, and he does. He’s out there for the people.”
Rachel, teaching assistant
“My views are quite mixed. I do think Farage has done some good things in Clacton — he’s brought in holiday clubs for working parents. But I do think he spends a lot of time in America, and I would rather him be concentrating on our problems that we’ve got here.”
Sally, university assistant
“I think Nigel’s good. He’s a breath of fresh air… I’m not convinced he would make a good Prime Minister. I think there’s so many flaws, but his ideas are ideals rather than actual aims and achievables.”
Stephen, retired
“I personally don’t trust him. I think he let us down over Brexit, where he gave us a load of information, and then when it really mattered, he went abroad and left everyone in the lurch.”
Jake, unemployed
“In all fairness, in two years, what’s he done for Clacton?”
Dean, mental health worker
The finance row is damaging for some, whereas for others it’s just “what all politicians are like”
For some the £5 million donation story showed Farage had clearly done something wrong; for others it was indistinguishable from the freebies and sleaze of every other politician. His most devoted fans thought it was jealousy or an establishment stitch-up, while others felt it was less about the gift itself than his refusal to be open about it.
Interestingly, even Farage’s critics rarely viewed him as an exception – pointing out that “all politicians are bent to a lesser or greater degree.”
“It’s not a law, it’s the rules and regulations at Westminster that state that anything substantial, even a gift if it’s not from family, needs to be put in. And his failing was to not do that… he has done something wrong.”
Ella, unemployed
“I think a lot of it is jealousy. Why shouldn’t that man, if they gave me five million, I’d take it and run. Why are they picking him to pieces?”
Brenda, retired
“I think all politicians have a little bit of a scrape off, to be fair. I don’t think you can trust any of them.”
Sally, university assistant
“If somebody gifted me five million pound, I’d be like, ‘Thank you very much.’ And I would tell everyone about it because I’d be happy about it. But obviously he’s not – and this is what
this is about, isn’t it? (…) Why’s he keeping it secret?”
Carla, post officer
Some participants agreed with the idea of an establishment trying to bring Farage down; others thought he was the establishment.
“It’s probably what they call the establishment. The ones behind the scenes… they’re probably worried that if Farage and Reform do get in, their jobs are going to be on the line.”
Colin, retired
“You can’t really say that Farage is not a member of the establishment, considering how often he’s at Ascot. And the fact that he’s a City trader — you don’t get much more establishment than that.”
Lewis, IT engineer
Even his fans think the standards probe should run its course
Nearly everyone – including Farage’s strongest supporters in the focus groups – felt that winning the by-election would be no reason to halt the standards process on his return, even if that means a second by-election.
“Has to be. From a political point of view, it’s basically he’s getting nicked for something. So if that’s the case, you have to go down the process again… it’s like if you get done for drink driving — they tend to ask you to redo your test.”
Lewis, IT engineer
“Two by-elections probably within six months — that’s a waste of a lot of money that could be better spent elsewhere, because it still comes from us taxpayers to fund it.”
Ella, unemployed
“Now the other parties have withdrawn, this by-election isn’t really a real by-election anymore. There isn’t any competition.”
Dan, solution architect
Count Binface
Participants had heard of Count Binface but mostly saw him as a joke. A few said they’d back him for precisely that reason. Meanwhile some participants worried that a joke candidate was making a “mockery” of the election, and making Clacton look silly.
“Joke, isn’t it really?”
Sally, university assistant
“Yeah, I’ll vote for him, because in his own words, he’s not Nigel Farage.”
Lewis, IT engineer
“It just makes us look silly, surely. It’s like a comedy show.”
Rachel, teaching assistant
“It looks like I’m voting for a man that wears a dustbin on his head… but being as nobody else is really standing against him, there’s no option really.”
Ella, unemployed
“It’s just a bit of a laugh and a bit of a mockery to the system… it’s just a mockery of everything, of Farage just trying to escape the investigation for a couple of months while he can probably backhand someone else.”
Dean, mental health worker
Immigration is a key theme
According to our immigration salience MRP, 65 per cent of Clacton residents consider immigration to be a top issue facing the country – the 2nd highest salience in the country. And this is a theme that came up often in our conversations with voters in Clacton.
Participants drew a clear line between migrants entering the UK legally and contributing to industries like care and the NHS, and those arriving on small boats. A lot of the frustration centred around pressure on school places, GPs and housing, and a sense of unfairness that people who’ve paid in aren’t getting priority.
