Nigel Farage won Thursday’s parliamentary by-election in Clacton, England, while the satirical candidate Count Binface finished second with 9,455 votes.
Farage, the leader of the right-wing party Reform UK, took 22,239 votes in the eastern English constituency. According to reporting by DR, the costumed space warrior became his most visible opponent in the contest. The vote totals were also reported in live coverage by the BBC.
Behind the tin dustbin helmet is Jon Harvey, a 46-year-old comedian. When not in costume, he writes satire, including for the BBC series The Thick of It, DR reports. His stated campaign causes have included a price cap on croissants, a vote on renaming the planet Pluto, and building at least one house that ordinary people can afford.
Harvey first entered British politics in 2017, when he stood against then Prime Minister Theresa May in her own constituency. He ran again in the 2019 general election as a representative of the planet Sigma IX, and stood in the London mayoral elections of 2021 and 2024. His best result before Clacton was 308 votes in the 2024 general election, per DR.
Established parties stayed out
Eddie Ashbee, professor MSO at Copenhagen Business School, described the contest to DR as a parody election, because the established parties did not field candidates against Farage. He said many of Count Binface’s votes came from voters who would normally have backed Labour, the Liberal Democrats or the Conservatives. Ashbee added that it was a parody election in serious times.
Labour chair Bridget Phillipson defended the decision not to contest Clacton in an interview with Sky News, cited by DR. She said there was no reason for Labour to take part in what she called a ridiculous farce. She also said Farage had imposed the election on voters, and that there was a danger of normalizing the absurd.
Why the seat was vacant
The by-election followed Farage’s resignation amid a parliamentary standards dispute. Reuters reported on July 7, 2026 that he would make a statement about his future in public life, in a case concerning an undeclared donation of 5 million pounds, and that he intended to seek re-election. DR reports that Farage remains under investigation over an alleged donation from a cryptocurrency billionaire resident in Thailand.
The Telegraph reported on July 6, 2026 that the parliamentary sleaze inquiry into Farage had been delayed until September. Ashbee told DR that Thursday’s vote is probably the first of two by-elections in Clacton. He said a second contest could follow if the parliamentary investigation concludes that Farage broke the rules, and that the established parties would then likely put up candidates.
