Nigel Farage wins Clacton byelection in contest boycotted by every other major party

Nigel Farage has seen off Count Binface to win the Clacton-byelection" class="entity-link entity-event" data-entity-id="161428" data-entity-type="event">Clacton byelection in a contest boycotted by every other major political party.The Reform UK leader in July triggered the byelection in an attempt to shake off a deepening scandal over a £5m gift he received from the cryptocurrency billionaire Christopher Harborne.After a campaign in which a record-breaking 34 candidates vied for the coastal seat, Farage held on to Clacton, with 22,239 votes (63.34%) of the vote.His nearest competitor, Count Binface, a parody candidate dressed as an intergalactic rubbish bin, won 9,455 votes (26.93%). The turnout was 44%.Farage had been widely expected to win. A poll from Survation on Monday put Farage on 75% of the vote, with Binface on 20%. Farage declared himself the winner while the votes were still being counted.The victory will do little to stem mounting questions around Farage’s and Reform’s financial affairs. A formal investigation by the parliamentary standards watchdog into the £5m gift is due to restart as soon as Friday.Reform UK leader Nigel Farage arrives to cast his vote in the Clacton-byelection" class="entity-link entity-event" data-entity-id="161428" data-entity-type="event">Clacton byelection on Thursday. He did not attend the announcement of the result. Photograph: Joe Giddens/PADespite winning, Farage did not appear at the count for a victory lap, and claimed that Essex police had advised him that a plot was under way to embarrass him when the result was declared. The Guardian understands that the force did not advise Farage not to attend.Farage snubbed Clacton leisure centre, where the count was being held, for Farage Fest, a carnival-like event held in the rural fringes of the constituency.At the count, there was a heavy security presence, with bag checks and metal detectors at the entrance of the leisure centre. Responding to Farage’s claim that there was an “organised campaign” to disrupt the count, the chief executive of Tendring district council, Ian Davidson, said he would not comment on security matters but there was a “robust policing operation” in place.Since the contest was called, questions have also been asked about Farage’s links to the convicted fraudster George Cottrell, and the Metropolitan police opened an investigation into donations made to the party.skip past newsletter promotionafter newsletter promotionElection workers sort through spoilt ballots at Clacton Leisure Centre. Photograph: Dan Kitwood/Getty ImagesShortly after Farage called the byelection, which he claimed would be “the people versus the establishment”, every other main party boycotted the contest, calling it a “media circus” and a “vanity project”. Instead, Count Binface, the self-declared “entirely independent space warrior” created by the comedian Jon Harvey, emerged as Farage’s strongest challenger.The record-breaking number of candidates means tellers in the counting hall have had to grapple with the longest ballot paper in British electoral history.After standing in multiple British parliamentary elections since 1994, Farage was elected to the Commons as the member for Clacton in 2024. He won the seat with a majority of 8,400, taking 46.2% of the vote. The Conservatives came second and Labour third.