Politics as 'normal' simply doesn’t exist anymore

Nigel Farage's decision today to call a by-election and then stand as a candidate in Clacton-on-Sea, Essex, has been described as "typical sleight of hand"

A lot of Reform’s appeal was based on the idea they are different; Farage today suggests they’ve simply become the main act at the Circus.

Nigel Farage described the contest as "people versus the establishment", while opponents called it a political stunt to deflect attention from the allegations.

Reform UK leader will contest byelection in an audacious attempt to get ahead of two damaging scandals

Editorial: The Reform leader’s by-election stunt suggests that he is not the serious politician he so desperately claims to be

His gambit will make him look sad, pitiful, pathetic, and about as far away from prime ministerial as it is possible to imagine

His byelection stunt shows he is clearly rattled by a perilous position. Wildcards rarely endure: his future is behind him, says Guardian columnist Simon Jenkins

Over the years, the public have mostly seen the positive side of the Reform UK leader, not the one who explodes with anger

Politics as 'normal' simply doesn’t exist anymore