Just nine of 29 Reform defectors unveiled in Farage’s ‘special announcement’ are new

The Reform UK leader was accused of making the announcement in a bid to distract from infighting in the party

Nigel Farage’s unveiling of 29 new Reform UK councillors fell apart within less than an hour as it emerged just nine are new, with only three of those standing for election.

The Reform leader used a press conference at a swanky London hotel on Monday to unveil the slew of new councillors, claiming their defections proved “this party is very much on the up”.

But the lack of high-profile names among the new defectors fed speculation that a steady stream of turncoats has largely dried up as a result of a bitter spat between Mr Farage and Rupert Lowe, the ousted ex-Reform MP.

The Conservatives said Mr Farage was seeking to distract from the open warfare engulfing Reform and hoodwink journalists. Tory officials pointed out that while Mr Farage claimed all the councillors had defected in the past two weeks, four had joined Reform a month or more before the press conference.

The Conservatives said Nigel Farage used Monday’s announcement as a distraction from Reform UK infighting (PA Wire)

It also came as Reform faced embarrassment after it had to sack one of its council candidates who was found guilty of fraud on Monday. Dan Turner, Reform’s candidate for Louth North for Lincolnshire County Council, pleaded guilty to two counts of fraud at Boston Magistrates’ Court.

The first count was fraud by false representation and the second was fraud by abuse of position.

Amid the turmoil for Reform, leading pollster Lord Robert Hayward warned the upcoming Runcorn by-election is “now much more important” for Mr Farage as he tries to restore the party’s credibility.

However, Mr Farage on Monday downplayed the importance of the Runcorn by-election, pointing out it is Labour’s 16th safest seat. By contrast, he described Reform as the “new kids on the block”.

While he acknowledged there had been “a little bit of turbulence” in Reform’s ranks, he said any upset over the ousting of Mr Lowe “is very much at the edges”.

The press conference came after more than a week of infighting in the party, with Mr Lowe having been stripped of the Reform whip less than 24 hours after questioning Mr Farage’s “messianic” tendencies.

Nigel Farage brushed off the ‘turbulence’ in Reform UK’s ranks (EPA)

Reform said the Great Yarmouth MP was suspended for making “verbal threats” against chairman Zia Yusuf, but Mr Lowe has said he was the victim of a political hit job orchestrated by Mr Farage.

The row coincided with a slowdown in Reform’s rapid rise, which has seen it shoot past the Conservatives since the general election and even overtake Labour in some surveys.

Techne’s most recent weekly tracker poll for The Independent showed Reform falling to its lowest point since January after the chaos in the party.

According to the result, Reform is down one point to 24 per cent, down two from its peak four weeks ago, while Kemi Badenoch’s Tories seem to be the main beneficiaries, going up one to 22 per cent.

Labour is also down one point to 27 per cent but maintains a three-point lead, while the Lib Dems have hit their highest point in 2025 going up one to 14 per cent.

Reform are favourites to win the Runcorn by-election to replace disgraced former Labour MP Mike Amesbury, who won the seat in July with a 15,000 majority.

But asked whether the by-election, the first of this parliament, was a must-win for his party, Mr Farage said: “It’s a must-win for Labour, it’s not a must-win [for Reform], it’s Labour’s 16th safest seat.”

The latest defections to Reform come months after the party unveiled former Tory minister Andrea Jenkyns as its candidate for the mayor of Lincolnshire.

It has long been rumoured that other high-profile current and former Tory MPs are considering joining Mr Farage’s ranks, but so far the moves have failed to materialise.