Welcome to an exclusive Ask Me Anything session with me, John Rentoul, chief political commentator at The Independent.
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Nigel Farage has triggered a by-election in Clacton – and with it, plenty of confusion over what he is actually trying to achieve.
The Reform UK leader insists the contest is “real” — even though his only declared opponent is a man in a bin costume.
The by-election was called on Tuesday just as scrutiny of Mr Farage’s finances was intensifying, with reports that his long-standing ally George Cottrell had provided undeclared funding for his security and staffing in the year before he became an MP.
Labour, Conservatives, Lib Dems, Greens and Restore have all declined to contest the seat, leaving Count Binface as Mr Farage’s best-known opposition. Pressed by the Daily Mail on whether that made the whole exercise a farce, he insisted it was “a real election with real people” and accused the absent parties of “contempt for the electorate”. Ministers took a different view, suggesting he is simply “trying to pretend he’s Donald Trump”.
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The events of the last two days leave a lot to untangle: why has Mr Farage has triggered this by-election now? What does he expect to gain from it? And what does Labour and the Conservatives’ absence say about their own calculations?
I will be on hand to try to answer as many of your questions as I can. Join me on Friday 10 July between 3pm and 4pm BST for the Q&A.
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