How party leader of Reform UK Nigel Farage affected the UK election results

With his Reform party poised to snatch prize seats from Labour and the Conservatives, Nigel Farage aims to become UK’s prime minister in 2029.

Reform UK picked up 30 per cent of votes in some areas and could be on track to win a dozen seats in the UK election, with a party executive predicting Nigel Farage would be Prime Minister of Great Britain in five years.

The party’s deputy leader David Bull told Sky News the Conservatives were “destroyed” and the likelihood of Reform UK winning so many seats was “extraordinary”.

“(In) 2029 you’ll see Nigel as Prime Minister,” Dr Bull said.

Reform UK leader Nigel Farage reacts after being elected to become MP for Clacton. Picture: AFP

Exit polls predicted the party would win 13 seats, but after Labour retained Barnsley North, concerns grew that the projections were skewed.

As the counts progressed, Mr Farage said Reform was attracting an “almost unbelievable” 30 per cent of the vote in the north east of England, which was “way more than any possible prediction or projection”.

Reform UK leader Nigel Farage walking in Clacton-on-Sea, eastern England. Picture: AFP

He also claimed victory in the seat of Clacton-on-Sea, telling supporters that his plan was to “build a mass national movement over the course of the next few years, and hopefully be big enough to challenge the general election properly in 2029”.

“We’re coming for Labour, be in no doubt about that,” Mr Farage said.

“Believe me folks, this is just the first step of something that is going to stun all of you.”

On social media he said Reform UK “has caused an earthquake tonight – and we are just getting started”.

If proven correct, it will be a remarkable turnaround for the 60-year-old Reform UK leader. He had been unsuccessful in seven previous attempts to get voted in, and as recently as May told supporters he would not be standing in the next general election.

Dr Bull told Sky that support for Reform UK was coming from the “Brexit-supporting heartlands of the United Kingdom,” but the party was also drawing voters from Labour and the Conservatives.

But many “shy Reformers” who voted for the party wouldn’t necessarily have divulged their intention to pollsters, Dr Bull said.

The revolt against the establishment is underway. pic.twitter.com/xB7DQuvXWT

— Nigel Farage MP (@Nigel_Farage) July 4, 2024

“When the pollsters ask the people how are you going to vote, they don’t necessarily tell the truth, and we saw that in the Brexit referendum result, where the political classes were caught completely off guard, and we’re seeing it again,” he said.

Reform UK Supporters at an election campaign event. Picture: Getty Images

With a platform that includes getting Britain out of the World Economic Forum, increasing “stop and search” laws and banning the teaching of “trans ideology” in schools, Reform UK stirred controversy during the campaign.

They were also accused of being apologists for Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, with former Prime Minister Boris Johnson dubbing the party “Kremlin crawlers”.

Mr Farage was the subject of some violence on the campaign trail, hit with a milkshake in Clacton-on-Sea and then pelted with wet cement in Barnsley.

“I will not surrender to the mob, I will not stop campaigning, this democratic process has to continue,” he said at the time.

Originally published as How party leader of Reform UK Nigel Farage affected the UK election results