Kmflett's Blog

Nigel Farage won the Clacton By-Election on Friday morning. The result was announced at 6.30am. He was not there.

As often with Farage there were several explanations. He claimed he didn’t want to share the stage with ‘nobodies’. But then he also claimed there was a, not detailed, security issue. The police did not agree.

I don’t usually quote the BBC’s Chris Mason who has been something of a Farage fan, but this underlines Farage’s vanished status

The Clacton by-election has been unorthodox from the start – and results day has been no different, with winning candidate Nigel Farage choosing not to turn up to the result of a contest he himself triggered.

Not only that – I got up this morning anticipating being in the audience, on your behalf, for a Farage victory speech, here in Clacton, and then doing an interview him afterwards.

Neither of those things have happened. The Reform UK leader cancelled all of the interviews he had planned, with the BBC and others.

Again there are several alternative stories. Firstly and most obviously Farage wanted to avoid questions about his £5m. The Parliamentary Inquiry has re-opened. Secondly as the Guardian revealed. Farage had been at an all night Farage Fest in the Essex countryside. Perhaps he was just sleeping off the hangover.

Even so its odd behaviour to promote a By-Election and then vanish when you win it.

A bottom line is that Farage got 22,000 votes. The campaign against the racism and bigotry he is stirring up must not vanish