For many of us the most interesting thing about todays council elections in England and Wales will not be how Labour's share of the vote holds up. It won't even be about Cameron's impact on the Tory vote. No, the most interesting thing will be how well the BNP do. Given the massive amounts of media coverage that the BNP have achieved - and let's face it the party could never have imagined that they would get such good coverage - it will be interesting to see if they actually make a break-through. Nick Griffin has done everything to paint the BNP as a moderate nationalist organisation, he's been very successful in presenting himself as the acceptable face of fascism. And with the liberal establishment lined up to oppose him he's the natural recipient of the protest vote.
At the same time, it will be interesting to see how George Galloway's Respect does. They've not had the same publicity as the BNP, but that's because nobody really imagines that they are anything but a one-trick pony. The same cannot be said of the Independent Working Class Association (IWCA), who represent the best that the left have got to offer. The IWCA and groups like the Hackney Independent deserve to prosper, just as the BNP deserves to be ignored.
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