Brexit will inspire support for Donald Trump and smooth his path to victory in the US presidential election, according to Nigel Farage, an architect behind the UK vote to leave the European Union.
As Britain and the rest of the EU come to terms with the political and economic shock of the Leave vote, the United States is heading into an election with polls showing Trump, the populist Republican candidate, mounting a strong challenge for leadership of the world's largest economy.
Farage helped harness British voters' dissatisfaction with EU membership and turn it into a political force capable of defeating the pro-Remain government in the June 23 referendum.
He has since turned his attention to US politics, speaking on stage with Trump at a rally in Mississippi last month.
Having tested the waters in the United States, he believes the same anti-establishment forces behind Brexit will propel Trump to victory in the November 8 election.
"I now strongly think Trump will win," he told Reuters in an interview at his London office.
"I think Brexit is the first kickback against the establishment. It's not a British event, it's not a European event. It's a global event and I think it has implications for every Western democracy. In the case of America - absolutely."
Trump, a wealthy property developer, reality TV star and provocative political outsider who stunned even his own party by winning the right to battle veteran Democrat Hillary Clinton for the presidency, has come from a no-hoper to within a few percentage points of his mainstream rival.
Farage is a member of the European Parliament and has stood for election in Britain several times with his straight-talking views helping him become one of Britain's most distinctive politicians.
"There are people in America who look at Washington, who look at the lobby and the power of big business, who look at the detachment of a political class from them and their lives in a very similar way to how many of us saw Brussels," Farage said.
Farage stood down as leader of the anti-EU UK Independence Party after the Brexit vote, saying he wanted to get his personal life back, but the lure of getting involved in another insurgent political campaign has proved strong.
Critics say both Trump and Farage have massaged fears over immigration for political advantage.
Farage said he and Trump shared a common touch that allows them to connect with voters alienated from traditional politics.
"He's not afraid to speak his mind, and yeah, I know that absolutely gets the liberal establishment screaming blue murder, but maybe that's the way politics is going in the west."
However, Farage voiced concern about Trump's stated policies on NATO and free trade.
