British voters got their first chance to express fury over a lawmakers’ expense scandal by rejecting mainstream politicians in favor of fringe and extremist parties in European Parliament elections on Thursday.
The far-right British National Party, which bars non-white members, was slated to win its first seat. The anti-Europe United Kingdom Independence Party was also expected to benefit from voter anger at the economic crisis and recent revelations that lawmakers sought public reimbursement for items ranging from horse manure to swimming-pool repairs.
Poor results for British Prime Minister Gordon Brown’s Labour Party in the races for 72 European seats would increase pressure on Brown, who’s already struggling to handle the expenses furor amid calls for him to step down. Four ministers have quit the administration in two days, creating the image of a government in chaos.
Popular anger was also expected to benefit the Netherlands’ right-wing Freedom Party, led by Geert Wilders, creator of a short film that criticizes the Koran as a “fascist book.” Wilders has won support from Protestant and Catholic voters disenchanted with what’s perceived as the growing influence of the nation’s 800,000 Muslims, many of them immigrants from Morocco and Turkey.
Dutch voters are also upset at the ruling coalition of the Christian Democrats and Labor Party, which are seen as unable to offer rapid solutions to unemployment and bank insolvencies brought about by the global economic crisis.
Polls show the Freedom Party has the same level of support as the Christian Democrats and Labor. All three parties are projected to claim about 14 percent of the Dutch vote.
About 375 million voters across the 27-nation EU are voting on Thursday through Sunday, appointing candidates to 736 seats on the assembly in the second-largest election in the world after India’s.
The economic downturn, cynicism over the union’s eastward expansion and worries about relations between Muslims and non-Muslims were expected to fuel a voter backlash against mainstream politicians in many countries. Matters directly controlled by the European Parliament were taking a back seat to national politics across the continent.
“People don’t vote on European issues, they vote on national concerns,” said Simon Usherwood, a lecturer on politics at the University of Surrey in southeast England. “So now people will be thinking about the expenses scandal in Westminster.”
Record low turnout was also expected as another sign of voter disenchantment with the EU assembly, seen by many as a body of highly compensated but largely irrelevant public servants.
The parliament has evolved over the last 50 years from a consultative legislature to one with the right to vote on or amend, together with EU governments, two-thirds of all laws that take effect in all EU states. These cover immigration, environment, transport, consumer protection, trade and other areas.
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