Reform UK leader Nigel Farage faces off against Count Binface in British special election

Voter turnout expected to be low in Clacton, with 34 candidates on a metre-long ballot, and a summer heat wave hitting the town outside London

Polling stations opened around 7:00 am and will close by 10:00 pm, with counting beginning immediately and a result expected early Friday.

Voters cast their ballots on Thursday in a local English election pitting Nigel Farage against his main challenger, a comedian dressed as a trash can, in a test of opposition ‌to the Reform UK leader's brand of populist politics. Our correspondent in London Benedicte Paviot tells us more.

Nigel Farage faces 33 opponents despite the main Westminster parties boycotting a contest which they view as a stunt by the Reform UK leader

Thousands head to the polls in Clacton as Nigel Farage contests by-election one month after resigning  GB News

Nigel Farage, the right-wing populist leader, forced a by-election in his parliamentary seat of Clacton after he came under pressure over his financial declarations.

Polls have opened in the Clacton by-election after Reform UK leader Nigel Farage quit to trigger a contest in protest against scrutiny over donations to the party

Polls have opened in the Clacton by-election as Nigel Farage attempts to retain his seat in a highly unusual contest.

LONDON, Aug 13 - Voters cast their ballots on Thursday in a local English election pitting Nigel Farage against his main challenger, a comedian dressed as a trash can, in a test of opposition to the Reform UK leader's brand of populist politics.

Reform UK's Farage faces off against Count Binface in election  Reuters

A special election is taking place Thursday in the seaside town of Clacton, just east of London

Nigel Farage faces off against Count Binface in special election that's been denounced as a stunt  apnews.com

Reform UK leader Nigel Farage triggered a byelection when he quit as Member of Parliament amid an investigation into his finances. Avneet Dhillon explains what led to the probe, and why his main challenger in the race is Count Binface — a candidate dressed as a giant trash can. (Photo credits: The Canadian Press, Reut

Nigel Farage is about to fight the least challenging electoral test of his political career.

Count Binface appears to have become Nigel Farage's main competition in the Clacton by-election - and now another rival party has talked about a potential dream collaboration - the Loony Bin

Nigel Farage is the clear favourite, but Count Binface is attracting serious support in a by-election featuring a record 34 candidates, including an Australian software engineer and three "Loonies".

Can Reform UK’s Nigel Farage come to an amiable settlement with his former political ally?

The Reform UK leader triggered the contest after deciding to stand down amidst massive scrutiny over his financial affairs

How Nigel Farage and Reform fell in love with the UAE Imran Mulla on Tue, 08/11/2026 - 15:32 Middle East Eye investigates the increasingly close relationship between Nigel Farage's anti-immigration party and the United Arab Emirates Nigel Farage hasn’t always been fond of the United Arab E

In the wake of Ann Widdecombe‘s alleged murder, Reform UK members complained that they were being unfairly criticised by politicians and journalists. According to them, the level of intense criticism they receive is beyond the pale and puts them at risk of violence. While it’s certainly the case that UK political disco

Satirical candidates are a long-standing tradition in British politics, but few have made as much of an impression as Count Binface. TIME speaks to the novelty candidate ahead of the Clacton by-election.

Farage was elected to EU parliament five times before becoming Clacton MP, while Binface has been less successful – so far Nigel Farage has been standing in British elections since 1994, when he narrowly beat Screaming Lord Sutch of the Monster Raving Loony party into fourth place in a Commons byelection. He was electe

Calling himself the "only fresh thing on the menu," the trash-talking candidate is now in a prime position for the upcoming vote.

Party officials continue to snipe at each other despite calls for a pact

They're the frontrunners to represent Clacton in Parliament - but what do the Reform leader and independent space warrior stand for?

LONDON (AP) — Nigel Farage depicts himself as an outsider taking on the establishment, but now the tables have turned.

Nation.Cymru staff Nigel Farage has become the bookmakers’ favourite to be the next major UK party leader to leave his post following the tactical miscalculation which saw him trigger a by-election in his own constituency. The Reform UK leader resigned as MP for Clacton in an attempt to force a contest he believed woul

Who will win the Clacton by-election? Hugo Gye, our Britain political correspondent, visits the seaside town

Mr Yusuf's attack on Sir Ben, who was a British Army officer before entering politics, was branded 'unacceptable' by a fellow senior Reform figure.

Set in motion by Farage amid a probe into his finances, the election may backfire as all of the major political parties denounced it as a stunt.

Nigel Farage has announced a new headline-grabbing policy on prisons - and will hope it goes better than Reform's efforts on small boats and illegal working last week

Commentary: The most recent benchmark for success at such a bizarre by-election is gaining over 70% of the vote

Farage used a press conference in Westminster to publicly state a new condition for holding discussions with “that party."