As many as 75,000 Britons are set to make their voices heard today at the Clacton by-election – the sixth at Westminster since 2024.
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage resigned as an MP to trigger the contest at the start of July, calling the poll a “people vs establishment” vote.
Mr Farage was being investigated by the parliamentary standards commissioner over a £5million gift, which he received before taking his seat in the Commons.
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.
None of the other main Westminster parties stood candidates to take part in this contest, with Mr Farage one of 34 people – largely independents – standing instead.
Among those to contest the seat is satirical candidate Count Binface, whose real name is Jonathan Harvey.
Mr Harvey studied classics at Oxford, has worked as a scriptwriter for comedy shows including Have I Got News for You, and has stood against Boris Johnson, Andy Burnham, Rishi Sunak and Sadiq Khan at various elections in the past.
The Reclaim Party’s Laurence Fox, the Social Democratic Party’s William Clouston, three candidates from the Monster Raving Loony Party join the record-breaking list of candidates in Clacton today.
Polling stations open at 7am today and close at 10pm.
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What happened in the last by-election like this?
Back in 2008, Tory Sir David Davis resigned his seat in protest at plans to extend the legal detention of terror suspects without charge to a maximum of 42 days.
Like in Clacton, Sir David stood against a record number of candidates, then 25 – but the other Westminster parties refused to stand, branding his campaign a stunt.
Only he and two other candidates kept their deposit in the end: Green Shan Oakes and English Democrat Joanne Robinson.
Sir David eventually took home just shy of 72 per cent of the vote, but on a tiny turnout: only 34.5 per cent of voters turned up.
The then-Culture Secretary, Andy Burnham, called on the then-Shadow Home Secretary to fund the cost of the vote to the taxpayer, estimated at £80,000, from his own pocket.
Today’s contest is estimated to cost taxpayers around £250,000.
But Sir David’s campaign was ultimately successful: The 42-day detention proposal was ultimately defeated and dropped, and terror suspects can be held for a maximum of 14 days today.
Sheer number of candidates means Clacton result could be more than 24 HOURS away
The result of today’s crunch vote may not be announced until as late as 7am tomorrow morning.
The uber-long list of candidates – outlined below – means ballot papers in Clacton are almost one metre long.
Tendring District Council and returning officer Ian Davidson, in charge of the count, have also endured logistical problems due to the 90cm-long paper.
It means larger tables than usual will be 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.
READ IN FULL: The record-breaking list of candidates at the Clacton by-election
- Joseph 77 (Independent);
- Adham Alkhatip (The Forward Party);
- Count Binface (Count Binface Party);
- Nick The Incredible Flying Brick (The Official Monster Raving Loony Party);
- Tony Cane (Independent);
- Woke Trump Carrzee (Independent);
- William Stuart James Clouston (Social Democratic Party);
- Rees Cowne (Independent);
- Glenn Charles Cummings (Independent);
- Martin Davies (Freedom Alliance – Real People, Real Alternative!);
- Andy Erlam (Independent);
- Nigel Farage (Reform UK);
- Attieh Fard (Independent);
- Laurence Fox (The Reclaim Party);
- Tony Francis (Independent);
- Robin Green (Independent);
- Abi Hookway (Independent);
- Howling Laud Hope (The Official Monster Raving Loony Party);
- Stephen Richard Ingram (Independent);
- Amy Morris (Independent);
- Derrick Norbert Morris (Independent);
- Michael Noel O’Keeffe (Independent);
- Martyn OBrien (Independent);
- Nick Pelas (Independent);
- Ketankumar Pipaliya (UK VOICE safer and stronger UK);
- Daniel Pocock (Independent);
- James Ransley (Consensus Party Candidate);
- Gerry Smith (Independent);
- Kai Stephens (British Democrats);
- John Stevens (Rejoin EU);
- Baron Von Thunderclap (The Official Monster Raving Loony Party);
- Pamela Walford (Independent);
- Marcus White (Everyone is God Party);
- Marc Wilkinson (Independent).
‘It’s the people vs the establishment’ – Nigel Farage issues message to voters before polls open
Before polls open at 7am today, Nigel Farage said: “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.”
“It’s not just about me,” he added. “It’s about the people versus the establishment.”
The by-election “is our chance to send a stunning message to the political class: Britain needs Reform, Britain wants Reform, and Britain demands a General Election”.
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