Police have contested Nigel Farage’s claims that he was told by officers not to attend the election count due to a “credible threat” against him.
The Reform UK leader pre-empted the official Clacton declaration by telling supporters he had won “fairly convincingly”, adding that he would not attend the official declaration of the result at Clacton Leisure Centre as Essex Police had told him about an “organised campaign to disrupt and degrade the result”.
However, it is understood Essex Police did not tell Mr Farage, or any other candidate, not to attend the count.
A Reform UK spokesperson later said: “Essex Police advised Nigel not to attend the count tonight due to a credible threat against him.”
Richard Tice said Nigel Farage’s “team” judged there was “sufficient anxiety, concern and threats”.
A spokesperson for Essex Police said: “We have a proportionate and robust policing operation to ensure the safety and security of all participants in the count.”
Police vehicles were parked outside the count venue in Clacton-on-Sea all night and officers patrolled outside the building. A private security firm managed operations inside.
Clacton by-election acting returning officer Ian Davidson said he did not know that Nigel Farage would not attend the count until the Reform UK leader announced in a speech to his supporters elsewhere in Essex.
Mr Farage won with 22,239 votes, with Count Binface in second place on 9,455 votes. Mr Farage secured a 12,784 majority, 62.82% of the vote.
This is up from his 8,405 vote majority, 46.2%, when he won at the 2024 general election. The result was declared shortly after 6am.
Turnout was 44.37%, down by just over 14%.
A total of 32 of the record-34 candidates lost their deposit.
Mr Davidson, for Tendring District Council, announced over the tannoy system at the Clacton by-election that he understood Nigel Farage would not be attending the count.
“I just want to say we work very closely with Essex Police and have done so throughout this process and continue to do so tonight,” said Mr Davidson.
“We will continue with the count as we always do in a safe and secure manner.”
“I will not comment on security matters, but I am going to say that we are working closely with Essex Police and we have just had a further meeting and there is no issue in terms of completing the count tonight,” he said.
He said Essex Police had assigned an assistant chief constable as part of a “Gold Command” policing operation. He said he did not believe there was any threat serious enough for the count to be called off.
Mr Farage told supporters at an all-night “Farage-fest” event organised by Reform in Essex he would not be attending the count: “I’m not scared of these people, far from it.
“But I’m damned if I’m going to stand on a stage, having won a resounding victory, a ringing endorsement of all that I’ve tried to fight for, and you’ve tried to fight for, and be demeaned and humiliated by nobodies, and I will not sadly be attending the count.”
Mr Farage was due to make what was billed as a “major speech” in Clacton at 10.30am on Friday, but Reform cancelled it, saying he had “already commented on the expected result of the by-election”.
In his speech, Mr Farage said, hours before the result was formally declared: “The verdict is now in, and it is a convincing, overwhelming win with more votes than we got in the general election of 2024.”
He added: “Today the voters in Clacton have stuck up two fingers to the entire political establishment.”
He earlier told GB News: “Look, this is an overwhelming endorsement of me. I have had enough of being judged by mainstream media, being called a criminal.
“Do you know, if I made one sin, if I haven’t filled in a piece of paper, I’ve broken no law, I’ve broken no tax law, I’ve taken no public money, I don’t even own a motorhome.”
The by-election was triggered by Mr Farage’s resignation over scrutiny of donations from cryptocurrency tycoon Christopher Harborne. Labour and the Conservatives said his victory would not draw a line under the controversy.
A record 34 candidates were standing, with satirical candidate Count Binface as Mr Farage’s main challenger, after the other mainstream parties declined to stand.
Speaking to Sky News, Count Binface, a character created by comedian Jonathan David Harvey, referred to the possibility of a second by-election in the seat if Mr Farage is found to have broken Parliamentary rules.
He said: “You just said at the beginning of this interview that Nigel Farage is claiming victory, but in that case it’s going to be a two-legged match like the Carabao Cup or the Cold War, because we’re going to be back again in a few weeks aren’t we? We’ll see what happens then.”
He added: “Even if I got to 12%, so one-in-eight people in Clacton would rather vote for a space warrior shaped like a bin than Nigel Farage.”
Labour Chair Ms Phillipson said: “This is no victory for Nigel Farage. The mountain of sleaze and scandal he and Reform are now engulfed in has grown and grown while he’s been trying to distract the public by fighting a by-election against a bin.
“This morning, Nigel Farage shouldn’t be celebrating – he should wake up and smell the coffee. He must come clean with the public and put all the facts on the table over his secret £5 million gift, his relationship with a convicted fraudster, and the other scandals his Party is drowning in.
“Farage’s distraction by-election doesn’t clear his name – it just shows he likely has so much more to hide.”
A Conservative Party spokesperson said: “Nigel Farage called this fake by-election in a desperate attempt to draw a line under the questions surrounding his fishy £5 million donation.
“Whatever the outcome on Friday, this stunt has not done that.”
Before quitting Westminster, Mr Farage was being investigated by the parliamentary standards commissioner Daniel Greenberg over a £5 million gift from Mr Harborne, 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 the by-election – as bookmakers have made him the firm favourite to do.
Mr Farage could also face an investigation over support provided by George Cottrell, a long-term ally.
If he is found to have broken the rules and a suspension of more than 10 days is imposed, it could trigger a recall petition and the prospect of Mr Farage facing a second by-election.
Read MoreClacton by-election result live: Nigel Farage retains seat to return as MP
Farage may have won the battle for Clacton, but he’s losing the country
The hot weather is changing what UK house buyers want
England is officially in drought – how do we fix our water woes?
Child hospitalized as ‘apocalyptic’ fires rage on hottest day of the year - latest
20 injured in train derailment as police issue update on East Sussex ‘major incident’
