British politician Nigel Farage beat the 'trash bin' in the by-election! - Milliyet
Milliyet AppUygulamayı AçWebWeb'de Devam Et ENBritish politician Nigel Farage beat the 'trash bin' in the by-election!NewsBritish Politician Nigel Farage Beat The 'Trash Bin' İn The By-Election!British politician Nigel Farage beat the 'trash bin' in the by-election!14.08.2026 - 22:12 | Last Updated: 14.08.2026 - 22:12
MİLLİYET.COM.TR - Nigel Farage, the British politician and leader of Reform UK, who resigned following an investigation into his financial affairs—thereby triggering a special election—has been re-elected as a member of Parliament in Clacton. In the by-election—boycotted by the country’s leading political parties—Farage secured a “victory” by winning 62.82 percent of the vote against 33 independent candidates, including comedian Count Binface, who takes his name from the trash can-shaped helmet he wears on his head.
Count Binface came in second with 26.71 percent of the vote. In a speech at an event organized by his supporters in Essex and broadcast on X, Farage stated, “The verdict is in. This is a convincing and overwhelming victory.” While experts were certain Farage would win, they also predicted that Binface—who describes himself as an “intergalactic space warrior”—could secure around 20 percent of the vote.
In this context, voter turnout remained at approximately 44.7 percent, a figure noted to be significantly lower than the 59 percent turnout in the 2024 general election. While voters showed little interest in the election, even some Reform UK volunteers were saying the race was “nothing but a joke.” Jane Embelton, one of the party’s campaign staff, told AFP, “It’s a bit ridiculous. Basically, all of this is being done to make Nigel Farage look like a fool. But to me—or to those who support him—he doesn’t look like a fool at all,” she said.
So why did all this happen? Nigel Farage, a popular politician of the “alternative right” who rose to prominence especially during the Brexit period—which culminated in the United Kingdom’s departure from the EU—and whose name was even mentioned as a potential prime minister at one point, had resigned from Parliament following an investigation into a 5 million-pound donation from cryptocurrency billionaire Christopher Harborne, and his financial situation came under scrutiny.
The investigation, conducted by the body that oversees parliamentary ethics, is examining allegations that Farage and his Reform UK deputy, Richard Tice, failed to declare certain financial contributions they received; the two politicians, however, maintained that they had done nothing wrong. While Farage has described the investigation into his financial affairs as a “setup,” the probe—which had been put on hold following his resignation—is expected to resurface in the wake of this election result.
Experts who commented that Farage had gone down the by-election route in the hope of securing a vote of confidence assessed that his electoral move backfired. Prof. Stijn van Kessel of Queen Mary University of London emphasized that Farage’s plan to turn this by-election into a serious political battle had failed and that the resulting outcome even made Farage look “ridiculous.”
In addition, the London police confirmed that they launched an investigation last year regarding donations made to the Reform UK movement ahead of the 2024 elections. According to reports in the British press, the police investigation centers on “undeclared donations and financial support” from George Cottrell—a longtime ally of Farage who was convicted of fraud—and his mother.
