Theresa May has acted as if it were a given that the 52% would adopt her as their default champion going forwards, losing sight perhaps of just how many Leave voters plugged for Brexit as an act of rebellion against her predecessor, his government and ‘elites’ in general. Or indeed how many thought it might be a backhanded way of refloating the NHS.
The 'will of the people' was a myth that her party concocted and now appear to have ended up swallowing whole themselves.
General elections are solemn moments in the life of a democratic nation. Yet May appears to have regarded the snap election she unexpectedly called - and by implication the electorate itself - as a means to an end, a simple procedure that would allow her to reconfigure Parliament to suit her own negotiation position, both internally and externally.
It's like they have forgotten the difference between a general election and a referendum because they've had a bit more practice of late with the latter format. And it’s no wonder that the electorate has not responded especially well to being treated this way and that the PM can now look forward to a very uncomfortable run in.
There has been no element of the Conservative campaign that justifies the outcome of a working majority in the next Parliament. Indeed, I have reached the conclusion that no matter what my reservations about Corbyn and some of his supporters, a change of government now is probably a necessary first step in healing the entirely self-inflicted wounds of 2016.
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