Britain’s second-biggest city is strangely Italian. After the second world war its road system was remodelled(重新设计) (not entirely wisely) by Sir Herbert Manzoni, the son of a Milanese sculptor. Its canals are said to be lengthier than those in Venice. One of its greatest monuments, a gigantic(巨大的) clock tower often known as Old Joe, evokes(唤起（联想）) Siena. Its most famous bit of civil engineering is Spaghetti Junction. Now Birmingham has Italian politics, too.
英国第二大城市奇特地带有意大利色彩。二战后，其道路系统由米兰雕塑家之子赫伯特·曼佐尼爵士重新设计（并非完全明智）。其运河据称比威尼斯更长。最伟大的纪念碑之一——常被称为老乔的巨大钟楼——让人联想到锡耶纳。最著名的土木工程是意大利面条式立交桥。如今，伯明翰也有了意大利式政治。
In 2022 voters handed the Labour Party a healthy majority(让工党获得显著多数) on the city council, with almost two-thirds of the seats. In local elections on May 7th they gave no party as much as one-quarter (see chart). Some electoral wards(选区) in Birmingham were so politically fragmented(碎片化的) that the outcome of the election seemed almost random. One councillor was elected in Tyseley and Hay Mills after winning just 20% of votes.
2022年，选民让工党在市议会获得压倒性多数，几乎占三分之二的席位。在5月7日的地方选举中，没有一个党派获得四分之一以上的席位（见图表）。伯明翰的一些选区政治碎片化严重，选举结果几乎随机。一位议员仅在泰斯利和海米尔以20%的得票率当选。
Fury at the local and national Labour Party brought Birmingham to this pass(使伯明翰陷入如此境地). In Northfield, two middle-aged white women, both named Karen(① 详细背景：Karen 是网络迷因，通...) (“but not the ‘Karen’ thing you see on Facebook”) complain about shoplifters, shabby(破旧的) streets and the prime minister, Sir Keir Starmer. Their neighbourhood voted for Reform UK, a populist right-wing party. Nearer the centre, Ward End switched from Labour to an independent, Harris Khaliq. He says that people were livid(暴怒的) about the disruption caused by HS2(① 详细背景：HS2 是连接伦敦、伯明翰...), a troubled railway line, and the sorry state of the local park.
对地方和全国工党的愤怒将伯明翰推入此境。在诺斯菲尔德，两位名叫凯伦的中年白人女性（“但不是在脸书上看到的那种‘凯伦’”）抱怨商店扒手、破败的街道和首相基尔·斯塔默爵士。她们的社区投票给了极右翼民粹政党改革英国党。靠近市中心，沃德恩德从工党转向独立候选人哈里斯·哈利克。他说人们因高铁2号（一条问题重重的铁路线）的干扰以及当地公园的糟糕状况而愤怒。
The new Rome
新罗马
