Counting under way in Clacton by-election after Farage £5m gift row
Counting has begun in the Clacton by-election, where Nigel Farage is seeking vindication over an undeclared £5 million gift, with 34 candidates and no main-party rivals
The Full Story
A plain summary built from the channels that reported this story.
Counting has begun in the Clacton by-election, called after Nigel Farage resigned when an investigation opened into a £5 million gift he failed to declare. The count started shortly before the report, with 34 candidates on the ballot paper. No Labour, Conservative, Liberal Democrat or Green candidate is standing. Those parties treat the contest as a stunt by Farage. He says he wants the people of Clacton to vindicate him.
The ballot is unusually large. There are 34 candidates in all, including Count Binface. Counting is expected to take longer than usual. Tables have been doubled up because each ballot paper is about a metre long. The declaration is expected tomorrow morning, in front of a green backdrop in the corner of the sports hall. Instead of a small group of candidates gathered around the returning officer, the 34 candidates will stretch along in front of a white curtain.
Farage is expected to win handsomely against a field of independents and comedy candidates. Count Binface is expected to do best among the comedy candidates and could become the first of them to keep his deposit. For people in Clacton, this is a serious election in a very deprived constituency, even though the main national parties have stayed away.
The result will come after a long night of counting. It will show whether Farage's gamble of asking voters to back him a second time, during a donations row, has paid off.
On screen
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Key Claims
Claims reported during this story's coverage, grouped by how many channels reported each one. Select a dot to see the source excerpt.
| Claim |  |  |  |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reported by all 3 channels | |||
| Nigel Farage resigned as MP for Clacton in early July amid a parliamentary investigation into his financial affairs. | Reported by BBC One | Reported by BBC Two | |
| Reported by a few · 2 channels | |||
| A record 34 candidates are standing in the by-election. | Reported by BBC One | Not reported by BBC Two | |
| The main parties (Conservatives, Labour, Liberal Democrats, Greens) are not fielding candidates in the by-election. | Not reported by BBC One | Reported by BBC Two | |
Channel Perspectives
What each channel focused on, with key quotes.
ITV News at Ten treated the Clacton count as an unusual political event, stressing Farage's gamble, the lack of major-party candidates, and the practical problems of a 34-candidate ballot. Its correspondent balanced the circus-like elements, including Count Binface, with a reminder that the vote is serious for a deprived constituency. The package also noted the expected Farage win and the possibility of a record deposit-saving performance for Binface.
- “Now, there's a long night of counting ahead in the Clacton by-election to find out whether Nigel Farage's gamble of asking voters to back him a second time in the middle of a donations row has paid off.”
- “there has just never been a by-election with this many candidates, 34 candidates in all, and yet none from Labour, the Tories, the Lib Dems or the Greens.”
- “for the people here, this is absolutely a serious election in a very deprived constituency.”
Broadcast Timeline
News broadcasts tracked for this story, in time order.