Nigel Farage says he has won the Clacton by-election ‘fairly convincingly’, saying: ‘This is an overwhelming endorsement of me.’
The Reform UK leader is waiting to see if he has beaten his rivals – including Count Binface – to regain the seaside seat he won at the 2024 general election.
Speaking to GB News at a party-organised event in Essex, Mr Farage was asked whether he had won, and, in what is thought to be a nod to Count Binface, said: ‘Yeah, very convincingly, I’ve managed to beat the establishment candidate.’
He added: ‘Look, this is an overwhelming endorsement of me. I have had enough of being judged by mainstream media, being called a criminal.
‘Do you know, if I made one sin, if I haven’t filled in a piece of paper, I’ve broken no law, I’ve broken no tax law, I’ve taken no public money, I don’t even own a motorhome.
‘Maybe I haven’t filled in a piece of paper. I’m confident that I’m right, we’ll see where we go. I put this to the people of Clacton, said “you decide my future”, and tonight they will.’
The verdict on whether Mr Farage’s political gamble has paid off is not expected until near sunrise on Friday, due to the record 34 candidates in the contest.
The first ballot boxes began arriving at the Essex counting centre in the minutes after polls closed at 10pm.
Ian Davidson, acting returning officer, said turnout was around 43 per cent – compared to a 58.7 per cent turnout when Farage was first elected in 2024.
It is the largest number ever for a Westminster by-election and has caused logistical problems for the vote count – not least because the ballot papers are almost a metre long.
The 62-year-old declared he was forcing a ‘people versus the Establishment’ contest, but the other political parties boycotted the race as they dismissed it as a ‘stunt’.
Actor-turned-politician Laurence Fox, three contenders from the Official Monster Raving Loony Party and an array of independents also stood in the constituency.
Watch Live as the ballots are counted:
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Polls have closed in the Clacton by-election after residents were asked to decide if they would again back Reform leader Nigel Farage, pictured at The Ship pub on Thursday, as their local MP
Count Binface speaks to Sky News as he makes appearance at the Clacton by-election polling station
The first ballot boxes arrived shortly after 10pm. Turnout is around 43 per cent, according to the acting returning officer for the count
‘Three guesses who I voted for!’, he posted on social media shortly after he filled in his ballot paper.
The success of the Reform leader’s campaign is likely to be judged in comparison with the 46.2 per cent of the vote – and a majority of 8,405 over his Conservative rival – that he won in Clacton in 2024.
He will be expected to comfortably beat that result in the by-election, due to the absence of any other main political parties.
The 90cm-long ballot paper of all 34 by-election candidates has caused logistical problems for Tendring District Council and returning officer Ian Davidson.
The size of the ballot paper means larger tables than usual are being required at the count and the result will be announced on the floor of Clacton Leisure Centre rather than on a stage due to the number of candidates who would have to fit on it.
Photographers and TV cameras covering the count were advised by officials they will need a wide-angle lens to fit all the candidates into a single shot.
Before quitting the House of Commons, Mr Farage was being investigated by a parliamentary watchdog over a £5million gift from cryptocurrency tycoon Christopher Harborne, which he received before he won his Clacton seat in 2024.
Under Commons rules, new MPs are required to register any gifts worth more than £300 they received in the previous 12 months, except where the gift ‘could not be reasonably thought by others’ to relate to their political activities.
That investigation was paused when Mr Farage resigned his seat but will resume if he wins the by-election – as is widely expected by bookmakers who have made him the firm favourite to win the contest.
The Reform leader could also face an investigation over support provided by George Cottrell, a convicted criminal and long-term ally.
Mr Cottrell reportedly recruited and paid three staff to work on Mr Farage’s social media before the general election, and has continued to allow him to use a five-storey Georgian property he rented near Buckingham Palace.
Count Binface being interviewed on Sky News inside Clacton Leisure Centre
Independent candidate Daniel Pocock arrives at the polling station in Clacton
Forward Party candidate Adham Alkhatip, an engineering student at Queen Mary University, at Clacton Leisure Centre
Kai Stevens of the British democratic party arriving at Clacton Leisure Centre
Members of the Official Monster Raving Loony Party arrive at Clacton Leisure Centre as election workers review ballots after voting closed in the Clacton by-election
The Clacton by-election is the largest number ever for a Westminster by-election and has caused logistical problems for the vote count. Pictured: Members of the Official Monster Raving Loony Party arrive at Clacton Leisure Centre
Ballot boxes are carried into the counting venue in Clacton-on-Sea in the minutes after polls closed
A replica model of Count Binface was erected in the Essex constituency in support of the comedy candidate
Election workers begin the arduous task of sorting ballot papers, a task that will continue late into the night
Mr Farage arrived at a polling station in the Essex constituency on Thursday morning after more than a month of campaigning
A boycott by Britain’s main political parties left Count Binface, a perennial comedy candidate at Westminster contests, as Mr Farage’s most notable rival in Clacton
Ahead of polling day on Thursday, Mr Farage said the by-election was a chance to ‘stick two fingers up to the establishment’.
He continued: ‘At the beginning of summer we called this by-election to give the people of Clacton the chance to have their say on the endless political attacks on me, my family and those around me.
‘It’s given us the opportunity to knock on tens of thousands of doors, making the affirmative case for what I’ve done for the area, and what Reform will do for Britain.’
He added ‘it’s not just about me, it’s about the people versus the establishment’.
The 34 candidates standing in Clacton marks a new high for the most candidates standing in a single seat.
The previous record was 26, set at the Haltemprice and Howden by-election in July 2008, which was triggered by Tory David Davis in his own seat and was similarly ignored by the main Westminster parties.
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