Nigel Farage to run for parliament as Reform UK leader

Nigel Farage has announced he has taken over as Reform UK leader and will run as a candidate at the general election.

At a press conference in London on Monday, Farage said he had agreed to take over the role of leader from Richard Tice and will run as a candidate in Clacton, which according to recent polling he is in a strong position to win.

The former UKIP leader had previously ruled out standing at next month's general election after he claimed six weeks was not enough time for him to campaign and win a seat. 

However, he said he felt he would be letting "millions" of voters down if he did not change his mind an run to be an MP.

"There is a rejection of the political class going on in this country in a way that has not been seen in modern times," Farage told the press conference. 

"Something is happening out there. I changed my mind and I am not ashamed of it one little bit."

He said Reform UK under his leadership would likely receive more votes than Rishi Sunak's Tories. 

His announcement will likely fuel concern among Conservative candidates that they face a heavy defeat at the next election.

Opinion polls continue to suggest Keir Starmer's Labour is on course for a comfortable majority, and Farage's candidacy could make the task facing the Tories even more difficult by taking votes away from them.

Farage has stood as a parliamentary candidate seven times and failed to win a seat, but he has stood and been elected as an MEP five times.

He was closest to winning a seat in Parliament in 2015 when he lost to Conservative candidate Craig Mackinlay in South Thanet.

Farage made the decision to stand four days before the deadline for parties to select its parliamentary candidates.

UKIP won a by-election in Clacton in 2014 before winning its only seat in the 2015 campaign. Douglas Carswell, a former Tory MP, and a fierce critic of Farage, held on to it by a majority of more than 3,000 votes.