UKIP's European Poll Success Turns Up Heat on British Parties
The victory of the euroskeptic UK Independence Party (UKIP) of Nigel Farage in "historic" European elections in Britain added new heat Monday to the debate about its EU membership.
UKIP, a party without a single seat in Britain's national parliament, became the first political grouping other than Prime Minister David Cameron's Conservatives and the opposition Labor Party to win a nationwide election for more than a century.
Cameron said the outcome showed voters' "deep disillusionment" with the European Union and proved he was right to pledge to put Britain's membership to a referendum.
UKIP -- which wants Britain to pull out of the EU -- won 27.5 percent of the vote and 24 seats, leaving the main opposition Labor second on 25.4 percent with 20 seats.
Cameron's Conservatives were pushed into third on just short of 24 percent with 19 seats.
It was a disastrous night for the pro-EU Liberal Democrats, the national coalition partners who were reduced to a single seat, two fewer than the Green Party.
With only the three seats in Northern Ireland still to be declared, UKIP were assured of what Farage had already called on Sunday "the most extraordinary result in British politics for 100 years".
UKIP even picked up a European seat in Scotland, where it has no tradition of support, which Farage said showed it was now a genuinely national force.
"We're going to get a good number of euroskeptics elected to the European Parliament," Farage said. "It's going to make a very big difference in the domestic politics.
"Up until now, European integration... always seemed to be inevitable and I think that inevitability will end with this result.
"The people's army of UKIP have spoken tonight.
"I promise you this, you haven't heard the last of us," he said.
UKIP will now try to capitalize on its success in the European vote and a strong showing in local council elections last week by targeting a first Westminster seat in a by-election in Newark, central England, on June 5.
While UKIP benefited from the system of proportional representation used in the European vote, Britain's first-past-the-post system for general elections counts against it.
Cameron said the outcome showed the importance of his promise to re-negotiate the terms of Britain's EU membership and then put the deal to an in-out referendum if he wins the general election in May 2015.
"People are deeply disillusioned with the European Union," the prime minister told BBC radio.
"They do not think the current relationships are working well enough for Britain.
"They want change and as far as I am concerned that message is completely received and understood."
But Cameron rebuffed calls from some of his backbenchers to form an electoral pact with UKIP for the general election.
"We don't do pacts and deals. Conservative candidates will stand as Conservatives, fight as Conservatives and I hope win as Conservatives," he said.
Many analysts pointed to a result that showed Labor's once double-digit lead over the Conservatives has evaporated.
The Lib Dems meanwhile were left to survey the wreckage of an election which has been a strong point for them in the past.
Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg, who had engaged with Farage in two televised debates before the election, admitted the result was "gutting" but insisted he had no intention of "walking away".
The swing to the hard right in Europe -- highlighted by the National Front's victory in France -- failed to benefit the far-right British National Party (BNP) whose leader Nick Griffin lost his seat in northwest England.
Official figures showed British turnout at 34.2 percent.
Source: Agence France Presse
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