Why did Change UK perform so badly in the European elections while the Lib Dems and Greens made gains?
Politics Explained: The new party won just 3.4 per cent of the vote and failed to gain a single MEP
While other parties with a clear message on Brexit poached huge numbers of voters confused and frustrated by the ambiguous positions of the Tories and Labour, Change UK struggled to reach 3.4 per cent and did not gain a single MEP.
So why did the new party’s consistent message on the need for a second Brexit referendum fail to attract the millions of Remain voters who showed themselves ready to break with previous political allegiances?
One reason may have been confusion over their name itself. After establishing themselves as the TIGgers – The Independent Group – on defecting from Labour and the Conservatives in February, the group of 11 MPs was barred by election watchdogs from using a title which could confuse them with other independent candidates in the European polls, and had to dream up the Change UK tag in little more than 24 hours.
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