Tory vote plummets in Melton borough as Brexit Party dominates Euro poll

When the ticks on the ballot papers were counted on Sunday night, the Tories slipped to an unprecedented fourth place in the party standings.

The votes in Melton contributed to those from other areas in the region to see the election of three candidates from the Brexit Party and one each from the Liberal Democrats and Labour as MEPs for the East Midlands.

The results in Melton and the region as a whole mirrored the national picture as the newly-formed Brexit Party, led by Nigel Farage, celebrated 29 candidates being elected and only four Tories, a drop of 15 from the last European polls five years ago.

A massive 5,962 voters were received by the Brexit Party in Melton borough, 2,412 for the Liberal Democrats, 1,860 for the Green Party and 1,817 for the Conservatives.

There were 14,249 votes cast in the borough, which represented a turnout of 36.7 per cent.

Elected as MEPs for the East Midlands were Annunziata Rees-Mogg, Jonathan Bullock and Matthew Patten, for the Brexit Party, Williams Newton-Dunn (Liberal Democrat) and Rory Palmer (Labour).

Ms Ree-Mogg, sister of prominent Conservative Brexiteer, Jacob Rees-Mogg, described the results as ‘quite astounding’.

David Davies, co-ordinator of the Green Party in Melton said: “We are delighted to have finished third ahead of the Conservative party in Melton.

“This shows we are a real presence in the borough.

“Overall, the results show the public nationally do still not agree about Brexit.

“But, whatever the outcome, we need to work together to tackle the climate emergency which affects us all.”

Both standing Tories for the region - Emma McClarkin and Rupert Matthews - lost their seats in the election.