Rob Pownall, the campaigner who planned to stand against Nigel Farage in the Clacton by-election dressed as a fox, has pulled out of the race, condemning it as a ‘farce’ that has become ‘more of a circus than even I expected’. The 27-year-old, who came joint second-last in the Makerfield by-election last month with 18 votes, said in a video: ‘I just don’t think our cause is helped by sharing a stage with these people.’ He cited the arrival of right-wing agitator Laurence Fox and former Married at First Sight star Luke Worley as reasons for withdrawing.
The by-election, triggered when Nigel Farage quit as MP to stand again, will be held on 13 August – a week later than Reform UK had hoped. The main Westminster parties are boycotting the contest, variously calling it a ‘stunt’ and a ‘vanity project’. That has left Farage facing a line-up of celebrities and novelty candidates, with independent ‘space warrior’ Count Binface emerging as the highest-profile opponent. Other candidates include actor and political activist Laurence Fox, Piers Corbyn, and some local residents.
“Rob Pownall quits Clacton by-election calling it a 'circus'; Count Binface leads Farage in polls.”
Farage declared the vote a ‘people versus the establishment’ contest, but an Ipsos poll published last week found that 33% of Brits hoped Binface would win, compared with 21% backing Farage. The Clacton constituency has a history of anti-establishment voting: at a 2014 by-election, it sent the UK’s first ever Ukip MP to Westminster. But when the author of a New Statesman opinion piece stood for Labour there in 2025, he found it ‘not fertile Labour territory’.
Acting returning officer Ian Davidson urged residents to register by 28 July and ensure they have valid voter ID. Nominations open on Monday with a deadline of 17 July. Farage’s gamble – resigning to force a by-election he is expected to win – risks backfiring if the novelty vote coalesces around Binface.