Special election losses continue for UK's Boris Johnson | Eastern NC Now

The abandonment of Boris Johnson by supporters of his Conservative Party continues in special elections (or by-elections as the Brits call them).  After the loss of two previously safe seats in Parliament recently, one of which had been in Conservative hands for 168 of the last 170 years, it is now even filtering down to local government.  Conservative Party voters are signaling their disapproval of Johnson by casting protest votes for minor parties or independents.  Johnson's lurch to the left continues to be political poison for his party.

A local government race in a special election in New Forest this week was a good example.  The Conservative Party vote fell from  72.2% in the last election to 18.5% this time, with the party falling from first place to third.  But the vote did not go to Labour, which fell from second place to fourth, dropping from 27.7% to 4.2%.  The winner was an independent, with most of the Labour defectors going to the Green Party.

The exodus of Conservative voters mirrors the recent resignation of Lord David Frost from Johnson's cabinet who said he was disillusioned with the direction of Johnson's government, citing tax increases, restrictive Covid measures, and Johnson's green energy drive which is raising prices.