Reform UK Wins 5th Seat After Recount in Basildon South and Thurrock

Reform UK won its fifth seat in the general election, with ‘paper candidate’ James McMurdock winning a seat in Essex by just 98 votes.

Chairman of Reform UK, Richard Tice, Leader of Reform UK, Nigel Farage, MP for Ashfield, Lee Anderson and MP for Great Yarmouth, Rupert Lowe pose for the media, in London, England on July 5, 2024. Dan Kitwood/Getty Images

Reform UK has won a fifth seat in parliament after a recount in Basildon South and East Thurrock gave candidate James McMurdock victory over Labour by just 98 votes.

The former Conservative MP for the Essex seat saw his vote collapse from 29,973 in 2019 to 10,159, and although Labour’s candidate Jack Ferguson increased his vote from 10,051 to 12,080 it was not enough to overhaul Mr. McMurdock.