Nigel Farage’s Reform UK party says it has more members than Tories
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Mr Nigel Farage, leader of the Reform UK party, attending the Old Surrey, Burstow and West Kent Hunt in Chiddingstone, on Dec 26.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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LONDON – Membership for the populist Reform UK party has surpassed that of the Conservatives, according to the party led by Mr Nigel Farage.
A counter on the Reform website showed the party had more than 133,000 members on the afternoon of Dec 26. There were 131,680 Tory members eligible to vote during the Conservative Party’s leadership contest in 2024 that installed Ms Kemi Badenoch at the helm of the party in November.
“This is a big, historic moment,” Mr Farage said in an e-mailed statement. “Reform UK are now the real opposition.”
It was not possible to independently verify the number provided by Reform or the latest Tory membership figures.
Reform has built a sense of momentum in 2024 after it secured 14.3 per cent of the national vote share during the general election that saw the Conservatives ousted by the Labour Party, ending 14 years in power.
Since then, the group has been buoyed by the stuttering start of Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s administration, as well as endorsements from the likes of Tesla chief and X owner Elon Musk.
Mr Farage, who is now the bookmakers’ favourite to succeed Mr Starmer as prime minister, in December met Mr Musk at US President-elect Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort and touted a possible political donation.
Funding from the world’s richest person would further upset the traditional two-party duopoly of British politics.
Ms Badenoch earlier this week dismissed the threat of Mr Farage securing party funding from Mr Musk, saying it could be “counterproductive” with British voters. Bloomberg
