Welcome to the new politics
The election that was never meant to happen. A result that never could have happened. Both events a product of the times.
Nigel Farage's Brexit party is rampant, surpassing UKIP's victorious total of 24 seats in 2014. Speaking of Farage's last political vehicle, their vote collapsed and did not return a single MEP to the European parliament.
It is not simply a case of UKIP voters moving to Brexit though. Labour and the Conservatives suffered similarly, all hoovered up by the boys in light blue.
Jeremy Corbyn's party were beaten by Plaid Cymru for the first time in a national election in Wales. The SNP dominated them in Scotland. They came second in London.
The Tories put in the worst electoral performance of their 185-year history.
Seismic and historic in equal measure. Ineptitude writ large. Britain's main political parties absent from the field of play.
As painful as it is to say the Lib Dems are the comeback kids in this sorry tale, going from their worst ever European election last time out (one seat) to their best (16). The Greens reached a new high. They have never done better in an election.
An existential question is being asked of British politics. Answers are not forthcoming except, perhaps, from one Green voter, who wrote "wank" next to every single party on their ballot paper other than the Greens. They received a "not wank."
Their vote was counted.
A dump truck without any tyres on has hurtled into our political system. Call it a proxy second referendum, Labour leadership contest, whatever.
https://twitter.com/PoliticsJOE_UK/status/1132817590194192384
It's clear voters viewed the ballot box through the lens of EU membership rather than the traditional left/right axis. A single issue is dictating electoral behaviour in a way that it has not before.
And that is cause for grave concern.
