# Electoral history of Nigel Farage

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Nigel Farage is a British MP for Clacton and former MEP for South East England who has stood as a candidate representing eurosceptic parties UK Independence Party (UKIP) and Reform UK since 1994. He was a Member of the European Parliament representing South East England from the 1999 election until the British withdrawal from the European Union in 2020, winning re-election four times. Farage has stood for election to the House of Commons eight times, in six general elections and two by-elections, losing in every attempt until 2024 in Clacton. He was also a proponent of the UK leaving the European Union in the 2016 referendum, in which the electorate voted to do so by 52% to 48%.
* This article is part of a series about
* Nigel Farage
Political positions
Electoral history
MEP for South East England
MP for Clacton
Euroscepticism
UK Independence Party
Leadership elections
2006
2010
European elections
2009
2014
Clegg–Farage debate
EFFD
2014 by-elections
Clacton
Rochester & Strood
2015 general election
South Thanet polling
UKIP: The First 100 Days
Meet the Ukippers
Brexit referendum
2016 EU referendum
Grassroots Out
Breaking Point
Results
causes
UKIP leadership resignation
Reform UK
Brexit Party
2019 European election
2019 general election
Conservative pact
Coutts bank scandal
2024 general election
Clacton in the 2024 general election
Media
UKIP Calypso
The Purple Revolution
The Nigel Farage Show
Farage
Brexit: The Uncivil War
I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here! :
vte :
Farage was voted UKIP leader in the September 2006 leadership election, and led them in the 2009 European Parliament election in which his party won the second-highest number of votes and seats after the Conservative Party. He resigned as leader later that year in order to concentrate on the 2010 general election. In late 2010, he was voted leader for a second time after the resignation of Lord Pearson of Rannoch. Farage led UKIP in the 2014 European Parliament election, in which his party won the most votes and seats; this was the first time since the December 1910 general election that Labour or the Conservatives did not get the most seats in a British nationwide election. He resigned as UKIP leader after the 2016 referendum.
The first election to the House of Commons that Farage contested was the 1994 Eastleigh by-election. After standing unsuccessfully for election in the next three general elections, all in a different constituency, he stood in the 2006 Bromley and Chislehurst by-election, in which he finished third with 8.1% of the vote. In the 2010 general election, Farage stood against the Speaker of the House of Commons, John Bercow, in the constituency of Buckingham, again finishing third with 17.4% of the vote. Five years later, he stood in the general election in the constituency of South Thanet, finishing second to the Conservative Craig Mackinlay, with 32.4% of the vote. He did not stand as a candidate for election in the 2019 general election. In 2024, Farage became leader of Reform UK once more, ahead of the that year's general election, and won election for Parliament in Clacton.

## Summary

UK Parliament elections
| Date of election | Constituency | Party | Votes | % | Result |
| 1994 by-election | Eastleigh | UKIP | 952 | 1.7 | Not elected |
| 1997 general election | Salisbury | UKIP | 3,332 | 5.7 | Not elected |
| 2001 general election | Bexhill and Battle | UKIP | 3,474 | 7.8 | Not elected |
| 2005 general election | South Thanet | UKIP | 2,079 | 5.0 | Not elected |
| 2006 by-election | Bromley and Chislehurst | UKIP | 2,347 | 8.1 | Not elected |
| 2010 general election | Buckingham | UKIP | 8,410 | 17.4 | Not elected |
| 2015 general election | South Thanet | UKIP | 16,026 | 32.4 | Not elected |
| 2024 general election | Clacton | Reform UK | 21,225 | 46.2 | Elected |
European Parliament elections
| Date of election | Constituency | Party | Votes | % | Result |
| 1994 European election | Itchen, Test and Avon | UKIP | 12,423 | 5.4 | Not elected |
| 1999 European election | South East England | UKIP | 144,514 | 9.7 | Elected |
| 2004 European election | South East England | UKIP | 431,111 | 19.5 | Elected |
| 2009 European election | South East England | UKIP | 440,002 | 18.8 | Elected |
| 2014 European election | South East England | UKIP | 751,439 | 32.1 | Elected |
| 2019 European election | South East England | Brexit Party | 915,686 | 36.07 | Elected |
UKIP leadership elections
| Date of election | Votes | % | Result |
| 2006 leadership election | 3,239 | 45.0 | Elected |
| 2010 leadership election | 6,085 | 60.5 | Elected |

## Elections to the House of Commons

Elections to the House of Commons are decided by first-past-the-post voting. Each voter votes for one candidate, and the candidate who receives the most votes in each constituency becomes a Member of Parliament.
Eastleigh by-election, 1994 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal Democrats | David Chidgey | 24,473 | 44.3 | +16.3 |
| | Labour | Marilyn Birks | 15,234 | 27.6 | +6.8 |
| | Conservative | Stephen Reid | 13,675 | 24.7 | −26.5 |
| | UKIP | Nigel Farage | 952 | 1.7 | N/A |
| | Monster Raving Loony | David Sutch | 783 | 1.4 | N/A |
| | Natural Law | Peter Warburton | 145 | 0.3 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 9,239 | 16.7 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 55,262 | 58.7 | −24.2 |
| | Liberal Democrats gain from Conservative | Liberal Democrats gain from Conservative | Swing | −16.8 | |
General election 1997: Salisbury :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Robert Key | 25,012 | 43.0 | −9.0 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Yvonne Emmerson-Peirce | 18,736 | 32.2 | −5.0 |
| | Labour | Ricky Rogers | 10,242 | 17.6 | +8.6 |
| | UKIP | Nigel Farage | 3,332 | 5.7 | N/A |
| | Green | Hamish Soutar | 623 | 1.1 | +0.1 |
| | Independent | William Holmes | 184 | 0.3 | N/A |
| | Natural Law | Shirley Haysom | 110 | 0.2 | 0.0 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 6,276 | 10.8 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 58,239 | 73.6 | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | −2.0 | |
General election 2001: Bexhill and Battle :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Gregory Barker | 21,555 | 48.1 | 0.0 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Stephen Philip Hardy | 11,052 | 24.7 | −0.8 |
| | Labour | Anne Elizabeth Moore-Williams | 8,702 | 19.4 | +1.3 |
| | UKIP | Nigel Farage | 3,474 | 7.8 | +6.2 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 10,503 | 23.4 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 44,783 | 64.9 | −9.6 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | +0.4 | |
General election 2005: South Thanet :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Stephen Ladyman | 16,660 | 40.4 | −5.3 |
| | Conservative | Mark MacGregor | 15,996 | 38.8 | −2.3 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Guy Voizey | 5,431 | 13.2 | +3.8 |
| | UKIP | Nigel Farage | 2,079 | 5.0 | +3.7 |
| | Green | Howard Green | 888 | 2.2 | +2.2 |
| | Independent | Maude Kinsella | 188 | 0.5 | +0.5 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 664 | 1.6 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 41,242 | 65 | 1.1 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | −1.5 | |
Bromley and Chislehurst by-election, 2006 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Bob Neill | 11,621 | 40.0 | −11.1 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Ben Abbotts | 10,988 | 37.8 | +17.5 |
| | UKIP | Nigel Farage | 2,347 | 8.1 | +4.9 |
| | Labour | Rachel Reeves | 1,925 | 6.6 | −15.6 |
| | Green | Ann Garrett | 811 | 2.8 | −0.4 |
| | National Front | Paul Winnett | 476 | 1.6 | N/A |
| | Independent | John Hemming-Clark | 442 | 1.5 | N/A |
| | English Democrat | Steven Uncles | 212 | 0.7 | N/A |
| | Monster Raving Loony | John Cartwright | 132 | 0.5 | N/A |
| | Independent | Nick Hadziannis | 65 | 0.2 | N/A |
| | Money Reform | Anne Belsey | 33 | 0.1 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 633 | 2.2 | −26.7 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 29,052 | 40.18 | −24.68 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | 14.3% | |
General election 2010: Buckingham :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Speaker | John Bercow | 22,860 | 47.3 | N/A |
| | Buckinghamshire Campaign for Democracy | John Stevens | 10,331 | 21.4 | N/A |
| | UKIP | Nigel Farage | 8,410 | 17.4 | +14.4 |
| | Independent | Patrick Phillips | 2,394 | 5.0 | N/A |
| | Independent | Debbie Martin | 1,270 | 2.6 | N/A |
| | BNP | Lynne Mozar | 980 | 2.0 | N/A |
| | Monster Raving Loony | Colin Dale | 856 | 1.8 | N/A |
| | Independent | Geoff Howard | 435 | 0.9 | N/A |
| | Christian | David Hews | 369 | 0.8 | N/A |
| | Independent | Anthony Watts | 332 | 0.7 | N/A |
| | Cut The Deficit | Simon Strutt | 107 | 0.2 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 12,529 | 25.9 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 48,344 | 64.5 | −3.8 |
| | Speaker hold | Speaker hold | Swing | N/A | |
General election 2015: South Thanet :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Craig Mackinlay | 18,838 | 38.1 | −9.9 |
| | UKIP | Nigel Farage | 16,026 | 32.4 | +26.9 |
| | Labour | Will Scobie | 11,740 | 23.8 | −7.6 |
| | Green | Ian Driver | 1,076 | 2.2 | N/A |
| | Liberal Democrats | Russell Timpson | 932 | 1.9 | −13.2 |
| | No description | Al Murray | 318 | 0.6 | N/A |
| | Manston Airport Independent | Ruth Bailey | 191 | 0.4 | N/A |
| | We Are The Reality Party | Nigel Askew | 126 | 0.3 | N/A |
| | Party for a United Thanet | Grahame Birchall | 63 | 0.1 | N/A |
| | Independent | Dean McCastree | 61 | 0.1 | N/A |
| | Al-Zebabist Nation of Ooog | Robert George Zebadiah Abu-Obadiah | 30 | 0.05 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,812 | 5.7 | −10.9 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 49,401 | 70.4 | +5.1 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | −18.4 | |
General election 2024: Clacton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Reform UK | Nigel Farage | 21,225 | 46.2 | New |
| | Conservative | Giles Watling | 12,820 | 27.9 | −44.0 |
| | Labour | Jovan Owusu-Nepaul | 7,448 | 16.2 | 0.6 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Matthew Bensilum | 2,016 | 4.4 | −1.8 |
| | Green | Natasha Osben | 1,935 | 4.2 | 1.3 |
| | Independent | Tony Mack | 317 | 0.7 | New |
| | UKIP | Andrew Pemberton | 116 | 0.3 | New |
| | Climate | Craig Jamieson | 48 | 0.1 | New |
| | Heritage | Tasos Papanastasiou | 33 | 0.1 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 8,405 | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | | 58 | −1.7 |
| | Reform UK gain from Conservative | Reform UK gain from Conservative | Swing | | |

## Elections to the European Parliament

Up to and including the 1994 election, British elections to the European Parliament used the first-past-the-post system.
European Election 1994: Itchen, Test and Avon :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Conservative | Edward Kellett-Bowman | 81,456 | 35.4 |
| | Liberal Democrats | A.D. Barron | 74,553 | 32.4 |
| | Labour | E.V. Read | 52,416 | 22.7 |
| | UKIP | Nigel Farage | 12,423 | 5.4 |
| | Green | F. Hulbert | 7,998 | 3.5 |
| | Natural Law | A.D. Miller-Smith | 1,368 | 0.6 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 550,406 | 100.0 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | | 41.8 |
| | Conservative win (new seat) | Conservative win (new seat) | Conservative win (new seat) | Conservative win (new seat) |
Since 1999, all British elections to the European Parliament have been done by a proportional representation system, in which each voter votes for one party in their constituency. The seats allotted for the constituency are then divided between the parties depending on their share of the vote.
Elected candidates are named. Brackets indicate the number of votes per seat won.
European Election 1999: South East England :
| List | List | Candidates | Votes | Of total (%) | ± from prev. |
| | Conservative | James Provan, Roy Perry, Daniel Hannan, James Elles, Nirj Deva | 661,932 (132,386.4) | 44.4 | N/A |
| | Labour | Peter Skinner, Mark F. Watts | 292,146 (146,073) | 19.6 | N/A |
| | Liberal Democrats | Baroness Nicholson of Winterbourne, Chris Huhne | 228,136 (114,068) | 15.3 | N/A |
| | UKIP | Nigel Farage | 144,514 | 9.7 | N/A |
| | Green | Caroline Lucas | 110,571 | 7.4 | N/A |
| | Pro-Euro Conservative | | 27,305 | 1.8 | N/A |
| | BNP | | 12,161 | 0.8 | N/A |
| | Socialist Labour | | 7,281 | 0.5 | N/A |
| | Natural Law | | 2,767 | 0.2 | N/A |
| | Open Democracy for Stability | | 1,857 | 0.1 | N/A |
| | Making a Profit in Europe | | 1,400 | 0.1 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 1,490,069 | 24.7 | N/A |
European Election 2004: South East England :
| List | List | Candidates | Votes | Of total (%) | ± from prev. |
| | Conservative | Daniel Hannan, Nirj Deva, James Elles, Richard Ashworth | 776,370 (194,092.5) | 35.2 | −9.2 |
| | UKIP | Nigel Farage, Ashley Mote | 431,111 (215,555.5) | 19.5 | +9.8 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Chris Huhne, Baroness Nicholson of Winterbourne | 338,342 (169,171) | 15.3 | 0 |
| | Labour | Peter Skinner | 301,398 | 13.7 | −5.9 |
| | Green | Caroline Lucas | 173,351 | 7.9 | +0.5 |
| | BNP | | 64,877 | 2.9 | +2.1 |
| | Senior Citizens | | 42,861 | 1.9 | N/A |
| | English Democrat | | 29,126 | 1.3 | N/A |
| | Respect | | 13,426 | 0.9 | N/A |
| | Peace | | 12,572 | 0.6 | N/A |
| | CPA | | 11,733 | 0.5 | N/A |
| | ProLife Alliance | | 6,579 | 0.3 | N/A |
| | Independent | | 5,671 | 0.3 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 2,207,417 | 36.5 | +11.8 |
European Election 2009: South East England :
| List | List | Candidates | Votes | Of total (%) | ± from prev. |
| | Conservative | Daniel Hannan, Richard Ashworth, Nirj Deva, James Elles | 812,288 (203,072) | 34.8 | −0.4 |
| | UKIP | Nigel Farage, Marta Andreasen | 440,002 (220,001) | 18.8 | −0.7 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Sharon Bowles, Catherine Bearder | 330,340 (165,170) | 14.1 | −1.2 |
| | Green | Caroline Lucas | 271,506 | 11.6 | +3.8 |
| | Labour | Peter Skinner | 192,592 | 8.2 | −5.4 |
| | BNP | | 101,769 | 4.4 | +1.4 |
| | English Democrat | | 52,526 | 2.2 | +0.9 |
| | Christian | | 35,712 | 1.5 | N/A |
| | NO2EU | | 21,455 | 0.9 | N/A |
| | Libertas | | 16,767 | 0.7 | N/A |
| | Socialist Labour | | 15,484 | 0.7 | N/A |
| | UK First | | 15,261 | 0.7 | N/A |
| | Jury Team (UK) | | 14,172 | 0.6 | N/A |
| | Peace | | 9,534 | 0.4 | −0.2 |
| | Roman Party | | 5,450 | 0.2 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 2,334,858 | 37.5 | +1.0 |
European Election 2014: South East England :
| List | List | Candidates | Votes | Of total (%) | ± from prev. |
| | UKIP | Nigel Farage, Janice Atkinson, Diane James, Ray Finch | 751,439 (187,860) | 32.14 | +13.29 |
| | Conservative | Daniel Hannan, Nirj Deva, Richard Ashworth | 723,571 (241,190) | 30.95 | −3.84 |
| | Labour | Anneliese Dodds | 342,775 | 14.66 | +6.41 |
| | Green | Keith Taylor | 211,706 | 9.05 | −2.57 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Catherine Bearder | 187,876 | 8.04 | −6.11 |
| | An Independence from Europe | | 45,199 | 1.93 | N/A |
| | English Democrat | | 17,771 | 0.76 | −1.49 |
| | BNP | | 16,909 | 0.72 | −3.64 |
| | CPA | | 14,893 | 0.64 | −0.89 |
| | Peace | | 10,130 | 0.43 | +0.02 |
| | Socialist (GB) | | 5,454 | 0.23 | N/A |
| | Roman Party | | 2,997 | 0.13 | −0.11 |
| | YOURvoice | | 2.932 | N/A | N/A |
| | Liberty GB | | 2,494 | 0.13 | N/A |
| | Harmony Party | | 1,904 | 0.08 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 2,348,168 | 36.5% | −1% |
European Election 2019: South East England :
| List | List | Candidates | Votes | Of total (%) | ± from prev. |
| | Brexit Party | Nigel Farage, Alexandra Lesley Phillips, Robert Andrew Rowland, Belinda Claire De Camborne Lucy, James Gilbert Bartholomew | 915,686 (228,921.5) | 36.07 | N/A |
| | Liberal Democrats | Catherine Bearder, Antony Hook, Judith Bunting | 653,743 | 25.75 | +17.71 |
| | Green | Alexandra Phillips | 343,249 | 13.52 | +4.46 |
| | Conservative | Daniel Hannan | 260,277 | 10.25 | −20.70 |
| | Labour | John Howarth | 184,678 | 7.27 | −7.39 |
| | Change UK | | 105,832 | 4.17 | N/A |
| | UKIP | | 56,487 | 2.22 | −29.91 |
| | UKEU | | 7,645 | 0.3 | +0.3 |
| | Independent | | 3,650 | 0.14 | N/A |
| | Socialist (GB) | | 3,505 | 0.14 | −0.1 |
| | Independent | | 2,606 | 0.1 | N/A |
| | Independent | | 1,587 | 0.06 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 2,538,945 | | |

## Leadership elections

Source:
2006 UK Independence Party leadership election :
| Candidate | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Nigel Farage | 3,329 | 45.0 |
| | Richard Suchorzewski | 1,782 | 24.1 |
| | David Campbell Bannerman | 1,443 | 19.5 |
| | David Noakes | 851 | 11.5 |
| Turnout | Turnout | 7,405 | |
2010 UK Independence Party leadership election :
| Candidate | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Nigel Farage | 6,085 | 60.5 |
| | Tim Congdon | 2,037 | 20.3 |
| | David Campbell Bannerman | 1,404 | 14.0 |
| | Winston McKenzie | 530 | 5.3 |
| Turnout | Turnout | 10,056 | |