A casual friend has just told me she's standing as a Reform candidate

[Mumblechum0]

And I have no clue how to respond.

I've always liked her, we're not close, ie don't do anything just the two of us, but are often in the same group at parties, book group, joint birthday bashes etc.

She's very posh, professional job, husband's a head fund manager (he walks round in a tweed cap and goes shooting on his family estate etc etc...just setting the scene, she's well educated etc.)

Anyway, she messaged me yesterday to say that she wanted me to know in advance that she's standing as a Reform candidate in our local elections; she didn't ask for my support, but didn't want me to just see her face on a leaflet through the door.

I'm married to a black man, have a mixed race son.

I haven't responded yet, as I don't know whether it's best to just ignore, or to say thanks for letting me know, or actually to say I'm quite horrified (which is my actual reaction).

Any ideas?

So presumably you ask everyone you know how they vote and believe the answer they give before deciding you can be friends with them?

People with similar morals, values and world view as you don't necessarily vote for the same party as you do for many, many reasons.

I suspect there'll be several more Reform candidates booted out between now and the local elections.

He was also all over the news slagging off the journalists for planting an actor to smear reform, claimed he’d never met the candidate before, that he wasn’t associated with Reform and Farage was seeking legal advice.

Why are you horrified?

They don’t have to vote for exactly the same party as me or agree with me to the letter, but if I KNEW someone voted reform or espoused any of their rhetoric, the friendship would be over. They go completely and utterly against my morals.

They can’t help themselves can they.

I would tell her that you’re surprised and disappointed. You would have expected better.

I would wish her luck with her candidacy then carry on as normal. Reform are a legitimate mainstream political party. I don’t agree with many of their policies, so I’m not going to vote for them. In just the same way that I’m not going to vote for another legitimate mainstream party, the Greens, because I don’t agree with many of their policies, either.

That’s how democracy works. We respect those whose views differ from our own as long as they respect our views.

And how did calling people ‘far right’ who have perfectly legitimate turned out in the US?

How did calling everyone ‘far right’ who would go on to vote Brexit, worked out for you?

The definition of insanity is to keep doing doing the same thing and expecting a different result.

Quit with the melodramatics and take a lesson.

Awwww.

How cute.

I wonder if these far left activists realize how ridiculous they sound when they come out with stuff like this.

I'd tell her not to bother after the way they treated Rupert Lowe.

At best Farage is controlled opposition and Britain is basically beyond help.

😂 so people who voted for Starmer, who appeared in the Telegraph today are far left activists! I'm afraid with hyperbolic statements like that you are the one that sounds absurd!!

Good on her!

But the point is that Trump and those who share his ideology (not necessarily all who vote for him) ARE far right!!!!! Their views are NOT totally legitimate!!! Yes, they are legal but they are utterly repugnant!!! And definitely don't need to be exported over here.

You seem to think that if anyone DARES to answer back and imply that this ideology is not perfectly acceptable, then this will only increase and even justify their views. Well, if that is true, it's already too late and America and the whole world are already in a dystopia. But this may not be the case. There are likely to be ways of fighting back. The non-right-wing evidently did not do so effectively so far. Maybe they should have chosen a younger candidate much earlier, and not replaced Biden at the last minute, Maybe they should keep their mouths shut until Trump and his ideologues slip up and only THEN move in- a risky strategy but one that sometimes works. Maybe on the other hand, they should imitate Trump's unpleasant but too-successful style and go on the constant attack, calling their opponents names (e,g. 'Dumb Donald' and 'Vile Vance' to balance 'Crooked Hillary' and 'Sleepy Joe'); call their supporters not 'deplorable' but 'the enemy within; etc. Maybe, most of all, they should try to come up with more positive solutions to people's economic and other domestic problems, and make voting worthwhile to the over one-third of the population who don't vote, and to those who voted for Trump just 'to get a change'.. Who knows, especially outside America. But certainly the last of these- trying to come up with more and more positive solutions and not just various greater or lesser degrees of austerity- is what is needed here in the UK. 60 per cent turnout in a general election should be a shocking wake-up call; and the leaders need to do more to show the voters that they're not 'all the same' and all useless to solve problems. But one thing is sure, the way to improve the country is NOT by saying, 'Ooh yes, the far right have a legitimate point. let's follow them'.

@ToWhitToWhooI think you've touched on the problem there.

Not enough people can identify far right politics when they see them. We are seeing it in action in the US right now and people are still denying it.

It's basic political theory but people aren't educated enough to know what they think and say is, in fact, very right wing.

They also don't see that protectionism and dislike of a religious group is far right behaviour... and a very slippery slope towards disaster.

We have the history books to show what happens.

PS Nobody called everyone who voted for Brexit 'far right'. There were in fact some very left-wing people who supported Brexit; and most Brexit voters didn't support UKIP, etc.

This ^^

Sorry, I don’t believe that any Reform voter or candidate is unaware that it’s a racist party. I’m fiercely protective of my family and if my husband and son were black, I’d block anyone like this.

I meant that they might, like Trump, call the supporters of their opponents 'the enemy within': not their own supporters!

You think that everyone who opposes Reform is a far-left activist?

I don’t respect people who are bigots and racist and these are exactly the people Reform are courting to vote for them. I would also hazard a guess they wouldn’t “respect” my views either.

You do realise Reform candidates at local elections in May are campaigning on sorting out potholes in roads and stopping the wasteful money spent on taxis for DC coming from miles away instead of employing a local taxi firm? Nothing about racism, nothing about Tommy Robinson.

😂 I’ve never been called a far left activist before.

I'm afraid we're all far left activists now.

Ahhh seeing the people coming off the boats on the beach, you believe they’re woman and children fleeing war torn countries - got it.

Err where exactly did i say that? oh yes i didn't...

Most, not all, are economic migrants.. but that doesn't mean they should left to drown or shot at.

Stopping them is extremely difficult.... any practical ideas on how this can be done?

No, thought not.