Reform UK Accuses Rival Party Restore of Handing Council By-Election Victory to Greens

Reform UK has accused its right-wing rival, Restore Britain, of splitting the vote and handing victory to the Green Party in a closely watched council by-election in Dover.

Nigel Farage’s party had been widely tipped to win the seat on Dover district council from the Conservatives. The expectations followed a dominant performance in the May 2025 Kent County Council elections, during which Reform swept all seven Dover seats from the Conservatives.

However, in Thursday's polling result for the Guston, Kingsdown and St Margaret’s-at-Cliffe ward, Green Party candidate Ingrid Dodd snatched the seat by a margin of just 34 votes.

The Green Party and Reform UK each secured nearly a third of the overall vote. While Restore Britain trailed further down the ballot, its share of the vote proved large enough to deprive Reform UK of what would have been a crucial victory. The Conservatives and Labour finished in third and fourth place respectively.

The result has sparked a bitter war of words, with Reform UK telling its right-wing rivals to, "take a look in the mirror".

George Madgwick, a spokesman for Reform UK, placed the blame squarely on the shoulders of Restore Britain, claiming the party had 'allowed' the Greens Party to win.

In contrast, Jez Hermer, the Restore candidate, told a local news site that he was thrilled with his party's performance and the overall outcome of the poll.

The narrow defeat is expected to reignite the debate over whether the two right-of-centre parties should form an electoral pact ahead of the next general election.

Restore Britain was founded in February by Rupert Lowe, the MP for Great Yarmouth, after he was ejected from Reform UK following a fallout with Mr. Farage. Mr. Lowe has since advocated for a formal electoral pact, which would see the parties stand down candidates in select areas to boost each other’s chances. Earlier this month, Mr. Farage stated he was, "open-minded", about exploring the possibility.

However, any potential alliance hinges on highly demanding conditions. Mr. Lowe has stated he will only agree to a pact if Mr. Farage adopts five core Restore Britain policies. These demands include introducing mass deportations, reversing what his party describes as 'Islamification' by banning the burka and potentially the niqab, banning halal and kosher meat, holding a referendum on the death penalty, and implementing deep cuts to welfare spending. Mr. Lowe's conditions also demand the exclusion of former Conservative ministers from any agreement.

Prominent figures within Reform UK have urged right-wing voters to unite behind Mr. Farage's party to avoid splitting the vote nationally. The former home secretary, who defected to Reform UK in January, warned Restore Britain voters to, "get real", and support Reform, arguing that failing to do so risked ushering in a second-term Labour government.

Meanwhile, the prospect of any wider right-wing electoral pact involving the Conservatives has been firmly shut down. Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch recently dismissed the idea of an alliance with Reform UK, describing the proposal as, "monstrous".