British politician Nigel Farage retains his seat in parliament after resigning last month over an investigation into his finances that triggered a by-election.
British politician Nigel Farage has comfortably won a local by-election on Friday after all the main political parties boycotted the vote in protest.
The former MEP had declared a “resounding victory” early Friday but said he would not attend the official result announcement that pitted him against Count Binface and a list of independent candidates.
Farage picked up over 22,000 votes in an election that saw a 44% turnout.
“The verdict is in and it is a convincing and overwhelming win,” he said as supporters chanted his name at an event in Essex, which was broadcast on X.
Farage triggered the vote by resigning his parliamentary seat, which he had held since 2024, over an investigation into his finances in the constituency of Clacton in the county of Essex.
The vote had been shunned by Britain’s main political parties, including the ruling Labour Party, as a stunt by the Reform UK leader – once touted as a potential prime minister – to dodge scrutiny of his dealings.
That has left candidates such as Binface – the alter ego of comedian Jon Harvey – to seize the spotlight.
“What an upside-down world it is, where Count Binface is now the candidate of the establishment,” Farage said in his speech.
He said he would not attend the count, where candidates traditionally gather for the declaration of results, saying Essex Police had warned him that an “organised campaign to disrupt and degrade the result” was planned.
The BBC reported that this was not true, quoting Essex Police in a statement that read: “We have a proportionate and robust policing operation to ensure the safety and security of all participants in the count.”
Acting Returning Officer Ian Davidson said election officials had worked with police to ensure the process was “completed safely and securely”, adding there was “no reason not to proceed with the count process at this time”.
Analysts expected a win for Farage, but forecast that the self-styled “intergalactic space warrior”, who campaigns wearing a rubbish bin on his head, could secure an uncomfortably large share of the vote, possibly approaching 20 percent.
