Britain’s election is getting nasty
- The fear for candidates’ safety is a reminder of Labour MP Jo Cox, who was murdered by a gun-and knife-wielding neo-Nazi sympathiser in 2016
Candidates hoping to be elected to parliament in Britain have faced all manner of threats and abuse in a particularly hostile campaign, with some worried for their safety when out canvassing.
When one man on Facebook threatened a violent attack on Dominic Graham, the would-be MP immediately called the police, who made an arrest.
It was far from an isolated case in the run-up to Thursday’s snap polls, called on the increasingly divisive issue of Brexit.
Graham is standing for the third time for the centrist, pro-EU Liberal Democrats, who want to cancel Brexit altogether.
“We didn’t see anything close to the threats we’ve been getting in this campaign,” he said, comparing 2019 with his previous election bids.
When he went knocking on doors in a residential part of Braintree, a town in Essex, northeast of London, he made sure he was accompanied by a fellow Lib Dem activist, in line with police and party security instructions.