SARAH VINE: Smug, crowing and spewing out repellent abuse. What makes Lefties so nasty - even when they're winning?
When you've been around politics for as long as I have, you become accustomed to certain levels of viciousness. But one thing I shall never get used to is the sheer tribal nastiness of the self-righteous Left.
Not even the prospect of impending victory can mitigate it — indeed, if anything, it seems to make it worse. Carol Vorderman, self-styled anti-Tory avenger, was one of the first to put the boot in yesterday.
'It feels like Christmas and the Tory turkey is about to get stuffed,' she wrote on X. 'Zero more sleeps,' wrote the author and political commentator Ian Dunt, 'It's happening. Kick the bastards out.'
He added: 'There's no civic duty today, only civic pleasure.'
'The Tories are finished, so rejoice,' tweeted our old friend Owen Jones. Even Andy Burnham, mayor of Manchester, who I tend to think of as one of the grown-ups, posted a mocking response to a tweet by Rishi Sunak: 'Lying to the last. Give them the defeat they deserve.'
Guardian columnist Owen Jones tweeted: 'The Tories are finished, so rejoice'
Carol Vorderman, self-styled anti-Tory avenger, was one of the first to put the boot in yesterday...
...'It feels like Christmas and the Tory turkey is about to get stuffed,' she wrote on X
The writer Femi Oluwole went one tasteless step further, tweeting alongside a picture of a cemetery: 'Join me for the Tory funeral at 8pm.'
For me, it's always been a clear dividing line in politics. The way the so-called caring Left seems so full of hatred for their political opponents — while those to the centre-Right are invariably far more restrained. In many ways it mirrors the behaviour of eco-extremists, or trans activists, or pro-Palestinian protesters.
'Tonight I'll be gadding around TV and radio giving the Tories hell where I can,' gloated the delightful Vorderman on X
They seem to feel a strong need to demonise their opponents, making all rational debate impossible. It's scowling, spittle-flicked, finger-jabbing loathing, on a very personal level.
I just don't get why. I mean, I don't hate Keir Starmer or Angela Rayner as people; I simply don't agree with their politics. In Rayner's case I actually rather admire her courage and ability. But the fact that her politics are at odds with mine does not mean I wish her any ill-will.
That's absolutely not the case from their point of view. Rayner, as we know well, considers Tories 'scum'. And as election night unfolded, the general crowing and delighting only grew worse. 'Tonight I'll be gadding around TV and radio giving the Tories hell where I can,' gloated the delightful Vorderman on X as reports of a huge Labour majority began to filter through.
Fair enough, the Conservatives haven't exactly covered themselves in glory of late — but these are still people we're talking about. And despite what Vorderman says, not all of them are crooks.
I messaged an activist friend to see if she wanted to come over for a drink. 'Thanks love,' she replied. 'So many friends about to lose jobs and, for some, sole source of income so am going to tuck up at home so I can speak to people and partners as they come in.'
Jones's post on X gloating about the Tories' huge defeat in the elections
Lord Mandelson popped up on the BBC, pleased as punch and 'chuckling along', according to Laura Kuenssberg, as Angela Rayner delivered a carefully measured response to the news of Conservative defeat — although she was rather more ecstatic on ITV.
The BBC team then dedicated the best part of ten minutes to humiliating and skewering Steve Baker, taunting him with the news that he had less than 1 per cent chance of retaining his seat.
Before long, the hashtag #ToryWipeout2024 was trending on X. My old Mail on Sunday colleague Jay Rayner helpfully tweeted a 'Tory Rat's [sic] in a Sack Blame Drinking Game' for his followers to enjoy. Jonathan Pie (578,000 followers) commented: 'Looking back on four years of the Tories is like looking back at the traumatising post-vindaloo s*** you just did in the toilet.'
A picture emerged of Miriam Margolyes, true to form, holding a 'F*** the Tories' tote bag.
Credit where credit is due: Ed Balls and George Osborne, on ITV, provided some genuinely restrained and insightful commentary, despite both — for different reasons — having considerable personal cause for delight.
The team at Sky TV could barely conceal their joy — when the exit poll was announced all you could hear were moans of unalloyed pleasure from Kay Burley. Sky's political editor Beth Rigby later tweeted: 'Hot take from exit polls: Starmer said he had to scale a mountain to win. He's just scaled Everest and taken off into orbit.'
Combative post by the author and political commentator Ian Dunt
Andy Burnham, mayor of Manchester, posted a mocking response to a tweet by Rishi Sunak
Daisy Cooper, Lib Dem deputy leader, interviewed on the BBC, declared it 'an absolutely phenomenal result', a megawatt grin on her face.
Outside Broadcasting House, there were boos for Tories. But clearly the Labour frontbench had been carefully briefed not to be too smug. Wes Streeting on the BBC was remarkably restrained, deploying some excellent nautical metaphors to express his delight.
Burnham didn't seem to have got that particular memo, throwing his hands in the air as the rest of the Sky team made variously ecstatic noises.
There was a degree of 'friendly' fire too. Darren Grimes, a prominent Brexiteer, declared on GB News: 'You deserve, I'm afraid to say, absolutely everything that you are getting tonight', to cheers from the channel's live audience.
Vorderman, glammed up to the nines, embarked on her victory tour of TV studios, expressing her disappointment that the exit poll was predicting the Tories still in second place. 'I just want them in third!'
But while Labour supporters were enjoying their victory, it was becoming more and more clear that all parties had failed to truly appreciate the Nigel factor.
The first declared result of the night, from Houghton and Sunderland South, gave an indication of the level of destruction wreaked by Reform on the Tory vote, garnering Farage's party second place and helping to deliver a decisive win for Labour's Bridget Phillipson even though she actually lost voter share.
In Sunderland, the Reform and Conservative votes combined were only 1,000 behind Labour. If that result is reflected across the board, then Farage will rightfully claim a pyrrhic victory. As Osborne pointed out, not so much a big vote of confidence for Labour as a big vote against Conservatives.
Big win of the night: the lady in the splendid hat announcing Blyth and Ashington. Again, the Labour vote was hardly up at all — but Reform decimated the Conservative support as they won over 10,000 votes.
If that pattern is repeated, it presents a huge problem for what remains of the Conservative Party. It shows the strength of feeling on the right of politics — and that is a uniquely Conservative problem.
Indeed, so many of the issues the party has faced internally, and which have been the cause of so much chaos, have stemmed from that internal division. This result will do nothing to unite these factions, and will present a huge conundrum for whoever takes over from Sunak. It's an analogous problem to the one that Starmer has faced — and successfully dealt with — within his own party, subduing the Corbynista hard-Left.
Whoever takes over, the Tories will have to find a way of reaching out to those voters. They have shown what they think of a Conservative Party perceived as too soft on issues such as immigration, and too bullish on things like taxation. It's a tough lesson, but the voters have spoken. If there's to be any way back for the Tories, they have no choice but to listen.
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