Nigel Farage resigned as Clacton MP on Tuesday, triggering a by-election he says will let voters judge him – but every major party has refused to field a candidate, and a prominent Reform donor has now urged him to “come clean” on his finances.
Mohamed Amersi, who donated £25,000 to Reform UK last year, told The Telegraph he would not support the party financially again “until the cloud hanging over this issue is resolved”. He believed other donors “feel the same”, he said, and called on Farage to “submit himself to a proper accounting audit”. The intervention came as Reform insiders acknowledged the snap decision was made in anger, with alarm bells ringing over the ongoing scrutiny of Farage’s finances.
“Nigel Farage faces a by-election boycott and donor revolt after resigning amid a sleaze investigation.”
The Reform leader resigned amid two parliamentary investigations: one into a £5m gift from Thai-based crypto-billionaire Christopher Harborne, which Farage says was for security; another into claims, published by the Sunday Times, that convicted fraudster George Cottrell provided free accommodation, staff and security. Farage has denied any wrongdoing.
Labour, the Conservatives, the Liberal Democrats and the Green Party all declined to contest the by-election, which Reform proposes for 6 August. Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper accused Farage of a “political stunt”, while Tory leader Kemi Badenoch branded it a “gimmick”. Farage hit back, telling the BBC: “They call it a stunt. It’s not a stunt, because real voters will have a vote for an MP.”
But the backlash has not come only from opponents. Reform insiders told the i Paper that the decision was made in anger, and that the party faces jitters over financial scrutiny and internal power struggles. The pressure intensified as Scotland Yard opened an investigation into a political donation of £37,500 made to Robert Jenrick’s campaign to become Conservative leader in 2024. Jenrick, who defected to Reform in January, told the i Paper he has had “no contact with the Met Police whatsoever” and denied any wrongdoing.
Farage accused his rivals of “running away from the battle because they know they would be annihilated”. But with his own donors wavering and a police probe hanging over a key figure in his party, the man who promised a “people versus the establishment” contest may find the establishment is not his only problem.