Reform challenged by ex-member from the right in by-election

Advance UK is a British political party which was formed by the ex-Reform politician Ben Habib. Habib did not leave Reform UK on good terms, and neither did Nick Buckley, who is now looking to challenge candidate Matt Goodwin in the Gorton & Denton by-election:

From Reform UK to Advance UK

According to the Guardian, Ben Habib quit Reform after “pushing for members to have more power”:

Habib has since attacked Farage:

As Rose Cocker reported for the Canary:

Advance UK launched back in September 2025. It was founded by tech billionaire Ben Habib, the former deputy leader of Reform UK. Both Tommy Robinson and Elon Musk have thrown their weight behind the far-right newcomers.

Nick Buckley, meanwhile, quit Reform in June 2025, stating:

I have just cancelled my membership of Reform UK.

I gave them 6 months and I am non the wiser what they are about or want. Their campaign is still ‘We Are Not Tories Or Labour’ – even though they will take any defection from any politician.

The best they can be is a stepping stone from today’s failings to something better tomorrow.

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At the present moment, they are still worth voting for because there is nothing else on offer with a chance of winning seats.

But do not place all your faith in this party to save us for I cannot see how they do it. They are preparing the stage for something better that will come – and hopefully come soon.

Form

As one pollster noted, Buckley has beaten Reform in an election before (although the situation was very different in 2024):

Buckley has made it clear he’s a Manchester local in promotional materials, and also that he doesn’t buy the ‘splitting the vote’ narrative. Speaking of narrative, it’s not entirely clear what Advance UK are offering that’s different to Reform UK, but Buckley has said he thinks the parents of trans people are “mentally ill”:

Regardless of how you feel about this statement (we disagree, obviously), it’s not going to be the most pressing concern for Gorton & Denton residents given the ongoing Cost of Living Crisis.

As we can see elsewhere on Buckley’s profile, the guy clearly thinks that turning up as a white British man is good enough to win:

It seems like some Advance UK members are unhappy, anyway, if the following is anything to go by:

It’s generally not a good sign when a party’s members criticise the party for standing in an election.

Let them fight

Best of luck to Nick Buckley and Matt Goodwin, anyway. We don’t want either men to win, but we do hope they can beat each other.

Featured image via Facebook