Farage and Count Binface go head-to-head in snap UK poll
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage is facing a list of joke candidates as England’s mainstream political parties have boycotted the Clacton by-election.
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage speaking at a conference on Jul 17, 2026, and Count Binface after losing the election for MP of Makerfield, at the count centre venue in Wigan, northwest England, on Jun 19, 2026. (File photos: AFP)
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WALTON-ON-THE-NAZE, United Kingdom: Polls opened on Thursday (Aug 13) in an eastern England by-election that pits hard-right leader Nigel Farage – often touted as a potential future British prime minister – against perennial joke candidate Count Binface in a vote shunned by the country’s main political parties.
Polling stations in the eastern Essex constituency of Clacton opened at 7am local time (2pm, Singapore time) with Farage up against 33 fringe candidates, most prominently Binface, who welcomed the day of the vote by quipping on X: “Bin Day cometh.”
At one polling station, a sample ballot paper with the lengthy list of candidates hanging at the entrance was taller than most voters, an AFP journalist saw.
Farage, leader of anti-immigration party Reform UK – which had topped national polls for 18 months before slipping recently – has represented Clacton in parliament since 2024.
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He shocked Westminster and beyond when he announced his resignation on Jul 7 following intense scrutiny of his and Reform’s finances, branding it a “stitch-up”.
That triggered a by-election which he vowed to stand in, framing it as “the people of Clacton versus the Establishment”.
“The people of Clacton should be the judges of my actions,” he said in a video released on Thursday, before casting his vote in the town of Walton-on-the-Naze.
England’s mainstream political parties have branded the election a stunt, accusing Farage of seeking to avoid financial scrutiny, and boycotted the vote.
That left the Brexit backer facing a list of joke candidates led by Count Binface – self-described “intergalactic space warrior” from the fictional planet Sigma IX who wears a rubbish bin on his head.
Binface – the alter ego of comedian Jon Harvey – has spent almost a decade as a joke candidate in UK politics and traditionally embraces the absurd.
But in Clacton he is grabbing all the attention, and while analysts give Farage a clear victory, Binface could win as much as 20 per cent of the vote, according to polling.
Political analysts have downplayed the vote’s wider significance in a constituency that overwhelmingly backed Brexit a decade ago.
“It will be astonishing if Farage were not to win,” political scientist John Curtice told AFP.
But some say it shows Farage’s election gambit has backfired.
“Farage’s plan to turn this by-election into a serious political battle failed,” Queen Mary University of London politics professor Stijn van Kessel told AFP, noting the resulting spectacle “makes Farage look rather silly”.
“WE CAN’T DECIDE”
Clacton voter Phil, in his 50s, appeared to agree. “It’s not going to change anything,” he told AFP, noting if Farage won as expected, a parliament committee probe into his finances that paused when he resigned would restart.
“I get what he’s saying, but we can’t decide,” he said.
Polls will close at 10pm, with counting beginning immediately and a result expected by around 7am on Friday.
Turnout – nearly 59 per cent in the 2024 general election – could be significantly down among the constituency’s around 80,000 registered voters, given the lack of traditional candidates.
Farage netted 46 per cent of the vote two years ago to become an MP on his eighth attempt, securing a majority of 8,405. But comparisons may be complicated by the boycotts.
Most of the candidates – the highest number of any parliamentary election – are standing as independents.
Binface – part of a long British tradition of satirical election contenders, which appears to have reached its zenith in Clacton – is not the only fringe entrant. The Official Monster Raving Loony Party will also field three candidates, among others.
“WAVERING”
The parliamentary sleaze watchdog is investigating Farage and his deputy, Richard Tice, amid allegations they failed to declare financial gifts – including in Farage’s case a 5 million pounds (US$6.7 million) donation from cryptocurrency billionaire Christopher Harborne.
They deny any wrongdoing.
Meanwhile, London police have confirmed starting an investigation last year into donations to Reform before the 2024 general election.
UK media have reported it relates to non-declared financial support from longtime Farage ally and convicted fraudster George Cottrell and his mother.
The controversies have coincided with a drop in Reform polling support and in popularity for Farage, long a divisive figure loved and loathed in largely equal measure.
Luke Tryl, who heads the More in Common research non-profit, told AFP Farage’s core supporters “seem largely undeterred” but that newer Reform converts “might now be wavering”.
Source: AFP/rl
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