The division on the right of the UK’s party system is now the defining feature of electoral politics in Britain

The United Kingdom Independence Party (UKIP) won its second seat in the UK’s parliament at a by-election on 20 November in the constituency of Rochester and Strood. Paul Whiteley writes that the victory gives the party national credibility ahead of the 2015 general election, and that a recent increase in the size of UKIP’s membership will improve their ability to effectively target key seats. In terms of the broader picture in British politics, he argues that the division on the right between UKIP and the Conservatives is now much more significant than the division on the left of the party system, even if UKIP are winning discontented working class voters to their cause.

• Primary Source

ESO: Background information: Cameron risks losing UK seat to anti-EU UKIP / UKIP wins second seat in Westminster http://www.europeansources.info/record/cameron-risks-losing-uk-seat-to-anti-eu-ukip-ukip-wins-second-seat-in-westminster/

---