Far-right anti-Islam activist Tommy Robinson ends EU election campaign in humiliating defeat

Tommy Robinson reportedly sneaked out of an election count centre in Manchester before European Parliament election results were announced, following a humiliating defeat at the polls.

MENA

2 min read

The New Arab & agencies

27 May, 2019

Tommy Robinson won only 2.2 percent of the vote in Engalnd's north west [Getty]

Far-right anti-Islam activist Tommy Robinson suffered a humiliating defeat in his recent bid to become a member of the European Parliament, with results announced on Monday showing he secured just over two percent of the vote.

The former English Defence League leader previously boasted that he would "walk into Brussels like Connor McGregor", referring to the mixed martial arts fighter's signature strut.

Having won only 2.2 percent of the vote, Robinson lost his £5,000 deposit to enter the race to become MEP for England's North West.

Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, reportedly sneaked out of the election count in central Manchester around an hour before the results were announced.

His swift exit marked the end of an embarrassing election campaign in which the former EDL leader was twice doused in milkshake.

While voters in the region had flatly rejected Robinson's brand of far-right politics, Nigel Farage's newly-formed Brexit Party won three seats with 31.2 percent of the North West's votes.

Former United Kingdom Independence Party leader Farage hailed the nationwide result, in which the Brexit Party won almost a third of the votes, as confirmation that the UK should prepare to leave the European Union without a divorce deal.

UK politics has been in crisis since electors voted 52 percent to 48 percent in June 2016 to leave the EU. But its departure, scheduled for 29 March, has been delayed because lawmakers have rejected the divorce terms struck between the government and the bloc.

The EU parliament election results reflect an electorate deeply divided over Britain's 2016 decision to leave the EU, but united in anger at the two long-dominant parties, the Conservatives and Labour, who have brought the Brexit process to deadlock.

After three defeats for her Brexit deal in parliament, Prime Minister Theresa May threw in the towel on Friday, announcing that she will step down as party leader on 7 June.