Nigel Farages Popularity Drops After Channel 4 Donations Sting

Nigel Farage’s popularity has plummeted as a result of a Channel 4 investigation into Reform UK’s finances, HuffPost UK can reveal.

A poll by Survation also found that more than half of voters say they are aware of the undercover sting, which led to senior Reform officials Dan Jukes and James Orr quitting the party.

The Metropolitan Police have have also launched a criminal investigation into allegations the party broke electoral law by trying to solicit money from a foreign donor.

The Channel 4 documentary appeared to show them discussing with a fake American donor how he could give money to the party via his British-based son.

In one scene, Farage himself is seen thanking both men, although he later told the BBC he “wasn’t even listening” when the meeting took place.

According to the poll, which was commissioned by millionaire climate campaigner Dale Vince’s Bablefish, 55% of voters had heard about the Channel 4 investigation, compared to 39% who had not.

Asked if it had affected their view of Farage, 54% said they had a less favourable opinion, compared to just 13% who said it was now more favourable.

Dale Vince said: “Our poll found half the people in our country have heard of the Channel 4 investigation and half of those took a dim view of Nigel Farage as a result.

“While Farage can deny wrongdoing, he can deny even listening to the plotting of his closest aides – the public aren’t buying it.

“While he tries smoke and mirrors to evade responsibility the public sees smoke and assumes there’s fire.”

A YouGov poll earlier this week showed Farage’s popularity has plummeted to an all-time low.

A separate survey by the same pollster last week showed more than half the country now sees the Reform leader as “very sleazy”.

Listen to Commons People, the podcast that makes politics easy. Every week, Kevin Schofield and Kate Nicholson unpack the week’s biggest stories to keep you informed. Join us for straightforward analysis of what’s going on at Westminster.