With his party riding high in the polls, toasting a game-changing £9m donation and welcoming its first Tory defector in the Lords, Nigel Farage seems to be sitting pretty. But creeping allegations of racist schoolboy behaviour — and his belligerent response to them
— could harm his chances of winning over wavering voters, writes Josh Glancy
(Cartoon of shocked? angry? frightened? people under the money bags holding placards saying ‘BIGOT’, ‘RACIST’ and ‘NAZI NIGEL’)
Crick believes that there is a clear line to be drawn between Farage the sixth-former and Farage the politician. "So much of his character is the same as you can see at Dulwich," he says. "The boy who's desperate for attention, who loves debating, who loves division. The English nationalism, the interest - almost obsession - with immigration, the admiration for Enoch Powell, the free-market Thatcherism; all of that began at Dulwich."
Much of the public has already made up its mind on Farage. In as much as this story cuts through to the wider elector-ate, some will think it deeply unfair to judge Farage on his adolescence; while others will see it as fair game and reflective of the man he later became.
But there will be many who are still undecided on Farage and, for this last camp, his belligerent response to the allegations will be a test.
He has the polling support. He has the Tory defections. He has the money now too. But does he have the ability to woo and keep voters who once found him unsavoury?
Farage is unlikely to change tack now.
"He's got to be true to him-self," says the senior Reform source. "There is precious little point in apologising to people like Ed Davey."
Additional Reporting:
Harry Yorke
On why Farage doesn’t apologise for his schoolboy racism:
“if he apologised, he would be turning to his own support base and saying, ‘You’re all guilty too.’ ”
Exactly.
He is racist. So are his voters. He can’t be pissing them off by saying sorry.
#NeverPM
www.thetimes.com/uk/politics/...