Reform UK membership surpasses Tories, party says

Membership of Reform UK has surpassed that of the Conservatives, Nigel Farage’s party has said.

A digital counter on the Reform website showed its membership tally before lunchtime on Boxing Day ticking past the 131,680 figure declared by the Conservative Party during its leadership election earlier this year.

Historic moment

Mr Farage said it was a “historic moment” as he posted on X: “The youngest political party in British politics has just overtaken the oldest political party in the world.

“Reform UK are now the real opposition.”

Party chairman Zia Yusuf said: “History has been made today, as the centuries-long stranglehold on the centre-right of British politics by the Tories has finally been broken.

“Nigel Farage will be the next prime minister, and will return Britain to greatness.”

Drop

There were 131,680 Conservative members eligible to vote during the party’s leadership election to replace Rishi Sunak in autumn.

The figure, revealed as Kemi Badenoch was announced leader on November 2, was the lowest Tory level on record and a drop from the 2022 leadership contest when there were around 172,000 members.

Reform returned five MPs to the Commons at the general election in July, including Mr Farage in Clacton.

A Conservative Party spokesman said: “Reform has delivered a Labour Government that has cruelly cut winter fuel winter payments for 10 million pensioners, put the future of family farming and food security at risk, and launched a devastating raid on jobs which will leave working people paying the price.

“A vote for Reform this coming May is a vote for a Labour council – only the Conservatives can stop this.”