Donald Trump has congratulated Nigel Farage on his “big WIN” after the Reform UK leader was elected as an MP for the first time.
Mr Farage, who failed in his seven previous attempts to enter parliament, will represent the Essex seat of Clacton after winning a majority of nearly 10,000.
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The prominent Brexiteer said his new party is “coming for Labour” after he clinched a victory with 21,225 votes, taking the seat from the Conservatives who came second with 12,820 votes.
Posting on his Truth Social platform, Trump said: “Congratulations to Nigel Farage on his big WIN of a Parliament Seat Amid Reform UK Election Success. Nigel is a man who truly loves his Country! DJT.”
The former US president, who is running for the White House again this year, did not congratulate Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer on becoming the UK’s next prime minister.
Mr Farage has had a good relationship with Trump for many years – with the former UKIP leader being the first British politician to meet the Republican after he was elected to the White House in 2016.
During the UK election campaign last month, Mr Farage claimed Trump “learned quite a lot” from him by studying his speeches before he ran for office.
Speaking after winning the Clacton seat, Mr Farage said: “I think what Reform UK has achieved in just a few short weeks is truly extraordinary.”
He added: “There’s no enthusiasm for Labour whatsoever. This Labour government will be in trouble – very, very quickly. We’re coming for Labour, be in no doubt about that.
“This is just the first step of something that’s going to stun all of you.”
Mr Farage is one of four Reform UK MPs who were elected following what will be seen as a good night for the party that was founded in 2018.
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Lee Anderson won the seat comfortably, while his old party – the Conservatives – crashed to fourth
Lee Anderson became Reform’s first elected MP when he was re-elected in his Ashfield seat after previously defecting from the Tories.
Mr Anderson was the deputy Conservative Party chairman under Rishi Sunak but joined Reform after being sacked earlier this year following a row over comments he made about London Mayor Sadiq Khan.
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Mr Anderson held onto his Ashfield seat comfortably, gaining 17,062 votes compared to 11,553 for Labour, who came in second.
In an even further blow to the Conservatives, they came in fourth behind an independent.
Meanwhile, Reform UK’s former party leader Richard Tice won in Boston and Skegness.
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Senior Tory says exit poll ‘devastating’
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Rupert Lowe also won for Reform in Great Yarmouth. He picked up 14,328 votes, compared to 12,959 for Labour’s Keir Cozens in second, and 10,034 for Conservative candidate James Clark in third.
In areas where it has not won, Reform looks to have eaten into the Conservatives’ share of the vote, pushing them into third place across the North East and even fourth in Gateshead Central & Whickham.
Welcoming the signs of promise for his party, Mr Farage earlier said on X: “It’s midnight, there are two results in from the northeast of England that put Reform on 30% of the vote, that is way more than any possible prediction or projection. It is almost unbelievable.”
Mr Farage’s ultimate aim is to make Reform the official opposition to Labour, who won this election by a landslide.
Sir Keir’s party secured the win with more than 410 seats – equating to an overall majority of around 170 – as forecast by the exit poll by Ipsos UK for Sky News/BBC/ITV News.
Meanwhile, the Conservatives had won 121 seats when there were two seats left to declare, compared with the 365 in the 2019 vote – the party’s lowest seat total in its modern history.
The wipeout has seen some of the Tories’ most senior figures lose their seats, including Defence Secretary Grant Shapps, Commons Leader Penny Mordaunt and Veterans Minister Johnny Mercer.
