Votes are being counted in the Clacton by-election, with results expected in the early hours of Friday morning - follow live coverage on this page
Turnout was around 43%, the returning officer says
The contest was triggered when Reform UK leader Nigel Farage resigned last month, while saying he would stand in the subsequent by-election
The contest had a record number of candidates, with more than 30 names on the ballot paper
But Westminster's other major parties boycotted the by-election, which Farage called while under investigation for a £5m gift he didn't declare
No-one I've spoken to – whether in Clacton or Westminster – believes anyone other than Nigel Farage will win tonight, writes our correspondent at the count
Daniel Wittenberg
Reporting from Clacton
Counting in the Clacton by-election is “already slower than usual”, the acting returning officer has said.
The result is not expected until after dawn.
Image source, ReutersAside from Reform UK, the Westminster parties have boycotted this by-election.
However, 34 candidates put their names forward, making it a record for a British parliamentary election.
Among them was Count Binface of the Count Binface Party and three candidates from the Monster Raving Loony Party.
Actor and political activist Laurence Fox, who set up the Reclaim Party in 2020, was also on the ballot paper, alongside 19 independents.
Other candidates included Adham Alkhatip from the Forward Party, William Clouston from the Social Democratic Party and John Stevens from the Rejoin EU Party.
Image source, PA MediaCount Binface has stood in a number of elections
Daniel Wittenberg
Reporting from Clacton
Counting is under way in the Clacton by-election.
The first ballot boxes had arrived outside the count venue by 22:15 and the first box was brought inside at 22:23.
Image source, Reuters
Harry Farley
Reporting from Clacton
Welcome to Clacton Leisure Centre. This seaside town and its surrounding area have played host to moments of British political history.
In 2014 UKIP gained its first elected MP when Douglas Carswell defected from the Conservatives and won a by-election.
In 2016 it cemented its reputation as a home of Brexit when around 70% of people voted to leave the European Union. And in 2024 Nigel Farage finally won a parliamentary election as one of five Reform MPs at the General Election.
Today people here have been taking part in another moment of political history; a record of 34 candidates are standing in this by election.
It’s taking place because Farage chose to resign and trigger a by-election in the middle of an investigation into his finances. The independent Parliamentary standards commissioner was looking into whether Farage broke the rules by accepting a £5m gift and not declaring it.
Farage insisted he did nothing wrong and quit, saying the people of Clacton should be the judges of his actions. But the other main political parties are boycotting, saying it’s a distraction and should be held after the inquiry has concluded.
You can read a full list of the candidates challenging Farage here.
We’ll be here throughout the night to bring you the result in one of the most bizarre by-elections in recent memory.
Daniel Wittenberg
Reporting from Clacton
The provisional turnout in the Clacton by-election is “around 43%”, the acting returning officer has announced.
The final figure will be confirmed after ballot verification has been completed.
Turnout in the constituency at the 2024 general election was 58.7%.
Harry Farley
Reporting from Clacton
Image source, PA MediaThe result here isn’t in doubt.
No one I’ve spoken to in recent days – whether in Clacton or in Westminster – believes anyone other than Nigel Farage will win tonight.
One thing that does matter is the size of victory. Despite not facing any challenge from the main political parties, Reform UK have spent a lot of time and around £150,000 campaigning here in recent weeks.
From sources I’ve been speaking to in the party, they argue if Reform UK wins at least 70% of the vote tonight, that will secure the seat for Farage even if he has to come back for another by-election if Parliament’s independent standards commissioner finds he seriously broke the rules over his £5m gift.
Farage wants to argue that a comfortable victory will send a message to the establishment. But the establishment in this by-election are represented by an assortment of minor parties and satirical candidates, including three from the Monster Raving Loony Party and Count Binface, a comedian in a spacesuit with a bin on his head.
The danger for Farage is not so much the result tonight. But whether it makes him look like an unserious politician, not the prime minister in waiting he insists he is.
Polls have closed in the Clacton by-election.
The ballot boxes will now be counted and we are expecting the winner of the contest to be announced early on Friday morning.
As always, our reporters are ready to give you the latest updates and analysis throughout the night so stay with us.
Image source, ReutersThe parliamentary constituency of Clacton covers a large part of north-east Essex called Tendring, and includes the seaside town of Clacton-on-Sea.
In 2024, Clacton elected Reform UK leader Nigel Farage as its MP with 46% of the vote - the first election since the constituency's boundaries were redrawn.
The previous general election in 2019 saw the Conservative Party achieve a 72% vote share.
Clacton was the first place to elect a UK Independence Party (UKIP) MP, when it re-elected Douglas Carswell in a 2014 by-election following his defection from the Tories.
It then became an epicentre during the EU referendum campaign and was a bastion of the Leave vote.
During the Brexit referendum in 2016, the Tendring area of Essex recorded one of the highest leave votes in England - at almost 70%.
Its population skews slightly older than England generally. According to the most recent data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) - which comes from 2024 - 47.3% of the constituency are aged 55 or older, compared with 31.5% of people in the country as a whole.
Simon Dedman
Reporting from Clacton
Ever since the last by-election in 2014 - when the then Conservative MP Douglas Carswell resigned and joined Nigel Farage’s then political party of UKIP - Clacton has been one of the corners of the country used to the political cameras' gaze.
A year later, in 2015, the seat was the only constituency UKIP won in a general election.
It then became a backdrop of Brexit with the leave campaigns coming to the town and posing with the pier in photo ops.
The seat returned to the Conservative fold in the general elections of 2017 and 2019 with Giles Watling elected comfortably as the MP. In 2024, Nigel Farage chose to stand in Clacton where his old political party, UKIP had succeeded.
Farage also won the largest Reform UK majority in the last general election.
Now Clacton goes to the polls again, in 2026, for the sixth parliamentary vote time in 12 years.
Image source, ReutersPolls in the Clacton by-election - triggered by Nigel Farage’s resignation from Parliament - will close at 22:00 BST.
The Reform UK leader, who quit as an MP last month, is standing for re-election in the Essex constituency.
While Westminster’s other major parties have boycotted the poll, 34 candidates are in the running - a record for a British parliamentary election.
The count will begin when polling stations close shortly.
We’ll bring you updates, analysis and reaction throughout the evening.
Image source, Reuters