The European elections are scheduled to take place in a few weeks on May 22nd 2014. It comes as no surprise then that the debate on the EU has been intensifying, with passions flaring on all sides. The Nigel Farage Vs Nick Clegg televised debates on the topic of EU membership which took place a couple of weeks ago really got the debate going. The polls certainly seemed to suggest that Farage was the clear winner and that UKIP’s popularity had increased, lending ample credibility to their anti-EU agenda.
More recently Farage and UKIP have been very proactive, going as far to suggest that they may even win the European election ahead of the three main parties. A bold claim to be sure. Whether or not UKIP will be able to successfully galvanise enough support to secure the votes to back up their bold claim will have to be seen. Furthermore Clegg recently stated that he believes UKIP to be part of a longstanding tradition of Euro-scepticism and that UKIP’s surge in popularity isn’t a new phenomenon.
Nick Clegg without doubt still believes that his party might do well and that the pro-EU movement is stronger. But the polls after the TV debates definitely suggested that Clegg was the loser, and the Lib Dems have never really recovered from their failed tuition fee promise to the students. Their popularity has dropped greatly ever since the 2010 election. Could they really become the fourth party in the race? It will be a hard pill to swallow for the Lib Dems if they not only come forth in the EU elections, but if UKIP win as well. Clegg will certainly have to re-evaluate his party and his leadership if that turns out to be the case.
It certainly seems that with their recent surge in popularity, UKIP is set to do very well in the EU elections. They may very well come out on top. The anti-EU movement would be greatly strengthened with a victory in the EU elections. But as history has shown before, polls and popularity in the run up to an election don’t always equate to results on the day. It will be fascinating to see how the country votes, are the UK voters anti-EU or Pro-EU? We’ll find out soon.
zarakafzal 