Nigel Farage on Brexit vote result: we won it “without a single bullet being fired”

The results of the historic Brexit vote are in: Britain has voted to leave the European Union. And everyone is stunned — including, apparently, United Kingdom Independence Party leader Nigel Farage, who was the main driving force behind the pro-Brexit movement.

At least, I’m hoping he was stunned, and that’s the reason he made the shockingly tasteless remark that the "Leave" campaign won the vote "without a single bullet being fired."

The Independent

Coming mere days after the horrific murder (by bullet, as well as a knife) of the young British member of Parliament Jo Cox — by a man who early indications suggest may have been motivated by Cox’s pro-immigrant and anti-Brexit stance — Farage’s "victory speech" is beyond the pale.

One hopes it was nothing more than an unfortunate but innocent gaffe on Farage’s part. Given Farage’s many other disrespectful, inflammatory, and outright racist statements, however, one fears this reference to a bullet being fired was anything but innocent.

Either way, if the past is any guide, Farage may well decide, now that the British press and social media are skewering him for his "crass" statement, that blaming his choice of words on his being stunned or tired after a long night of poll watching may be good idea.

After all, the best demagogues know that one of the most important skills to have is the ability to play off your most offensive and outrageous statements as having been nothing more than mere slips of the tongue or unfair misinterpretations by the media should the backlash against your statements get a little too hot.

But while I’m also pretty stunned and tired after a long night of Brexit poll watching, I’m not sure I’m quite tired enough to truly convince myself that Farage’s statement was an innocent mistake.

Will you support Vox’s explanatory journalism?

Most news outlets make their money through advertising or subscriptions. But when it comes to what we’re trying to do at Vox, there are a couple reasons that we can't rely only on ads and subscriptions to keep the lights on.

First, advertising dollars go up and down with the economy. We often only know a few months out what our advertising revenue will be, which makes it hard to plan ahead.

Second, we’re not in the subscriptions business. Vox is here to help everyone understand the complex issues shaping the world — not just the people who can afford to pay for a subscription. We believe that’s an important part of building a more equal society. We can’t do that if we have a paywall.

That’s why we also turn to you, our readers, to help us keep Vox free. If you also believe that everyone deserves access to trusted high-quality information, will you make a gift to Vox today?

One-Time Monthly Annual

$5/month

$10/month

$25/month

$50/month

Other

$

Yes, I'll give $5/month

Yes, I'll give $5/month

We accept credit card, Apple Pay, and Google Pay. You can also contribute via