Reform UK party leader Nigel Farage has resigned his seat in the UK Parliament.
It comes amid ongoing parliamentary investigations into allegations he did not properly disclose political donations.
Farage says he wants voters to judge him directly, so will run in a by-election for the seat he’s held since 2024. Several major UK parties say they won’t run candidates against him.
Farage
Farage is an English politician who served as a member of the European Parliament from 1999 to 2020. He was one of the leaders of the campaign for the UK to leave the EU (Brexit) in 2016.
In 2024, Farage won a seat in the UK Parliament representing the coastal electorate of Clacton-on-Sea for the party Reform UK, which he leads.
Reform UK has grown in popularity in recent years, picking up hundreds of seats in local council elections earlier this year.
Investigation
The UK Parliament’s Standards Commissioner is currently investigating Farage over a gift from cryptocurrency entrepreneur Christopher Harborne, reportedly worth around £5 million ($AU9.6 million), which it’s alleged he didn’t declare properly.
Over the weekend, the Sunday Times also alleged he had failed to declare financial support from long-time ally George Cottrell.
Cottrell was previously convicted of fraud in the U.S. in connection with a money-laundering scheme.
Resignation
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On Tuesday, Farage announced he would resign as an MP. He also said The Times’ reporting had resulted in “yet another Standards investigation”.
Farage alleged the Standards process was being used as “a political tool” against him and denied any wrongdoing.
“I’ve decided that the people of Clacton should be the judges of my actions,” he said.
His resignation pauses the investigations while the by-election plays out.
Response
Outgoing UK PM Keir Starmer called it a “desperate stunt” from someone “up to his neck in sleaze”.
Opposition Leader Kemi Badenoch said Farage is calling a “fake by-election to run away from a Standards investigation”.
Labour, the Conservatives, and the Liberal Democrats have all said they won’t contest the Clacton by-election.
Reform UK MP Robert Jenrick told the BBC that if other parties are “too chicken to stand, that says more about them than us”.
The by-election is expected within three to four weeks, likely landing in August.
If Farage wins back the seat, he stays in Parliament and the investigation restarts.
In the event that he loses, the Standards Commissioner will decide whether to resume the probe.
