Nigel Farage tried to put his bravest face on the latest Reform UK defeat and was mocked into next week
Spare a thought – only kidding – for Nigel Farage, who was super excited about Reform UK winning the by-election in Caerphilly …
Just arrived in Caerphilly to support @LlyrPowell.
Let’s put an end to 100 years of Labour rule. pic.twitter.com/upnjkncuHe
— Nigel Farage MP (@Nigel_Farage) October 23, 2025
… only to be undone by a stunning win for Plaid Cymru.
Caerphilly Senedd By-Election Result:
PLC: 47.4% (+19.0)
➡️ REF: 36.0% (+34.2)
LAB: 11.0% (-34.9)
CON: 2.0% (-15.3)
GRN: 1.5% (New)
LDM: 1.5% (-1.2)
GWL: 0.3% (New)
UKIP: 0.2% (New)Plaid Cymru GAIN from Labour.
Changes w/ 2021.— Election Maps UK (@ElectionMapsUK) October 24, 2025
So Farage’s band of MPs remains at five at the time of going to press, with Lee Anderson’s role as chief whip still basically nothing more than administrator of a group WhatsApp chat.
The Reform UK leader was doing this best to put a brave face on it, declaring that he knew all along exactly how many voters his party would get. Only problem was, it wasn’t enough to actually win.
At the start of polling day, I thought that we would get 12,000 votes and we did. I thought that number would be enough, but it wasn’t.
The total collapse of the Labour vote to Plaid was to a party that people know well and to a popular local politician.
The Senedd elections…
— Nigel Farage MP (@Nigel_Farage) October 24, 2025
Still, if anyone knows about failing to win a seat in the House of Commons, then it’s surely Nigel ‘eight elections’ Farage.
And it’s fair to say sympathy wasn’t just in short supply. It was entirely absent.
1.
Reality is the fantasy of Reform is just that
You were there 3 times campaigning – there yesterday all set to glory in the win
Meanwhile truth is polls can say what they like – Reform have won 1 of 17 byelections in the last 2 weeks too
— dave lawrence (@dave43law) October 24, 2025
2.
Putin knows how many votes he’s gonna get at the start of polling day too.
Just saying. https://t.co/YsQn9IEJch
— Stephen Flynn MP (@StephenFlynnSNP) October 24, 2025
3.
#Reform threw everything at #Caerphilly. They had everybody who was anybody down there. Spent a huge amount of money and resources.
And came a distant second.
Because their candidate was way too close to a traitor who worked for #Russia.
Doesn’t he look pissed off? 🙂 pic.twitter.com/DWxmENs1qN
— John O’Connell (@jdpoc) October 24, 2025
4.
Pathetic. You were strutting about like it was in the bag. But it turns out more people are repulsed by you, your despicable rabble of incompetent conspiracy theorists, and links to Putin than are attracted by them. Britain is not as wholly gullible as you thought.
— Chris Neill (@chrisneill) October 24, 2025
5.
Roubles at t’mill https://t.co/tC9PHtW1cV
— HENRY MORRIS (@mrhenrymorris) October 24, 2025
6.
Not open this morning, lads? Via @ianjamesjohnson pic.twitter.com/k4RXCFYjZM
— Mark Hooper (@markjhooper) October 24, 2025
7.
Maybe you should turn up to work pic.twitter.com/YKHoodsQuV
— ParktheBus (@ParktheBus2005) October 24, 2025
8.
Lol.
Now tell us about your relationship with Nathan Gill https://t.co/bS6vntXzS5
— Carole Cadwalladr (@carolecadwalla) October 24, 2025
9.
The irony, of course, from the Caerphilly by election was that Farage sent an invasion of English councillors and MPs into Wales, who were roundly told to ‘go back to where you come from’ by Plaid Cymru.
They closed the borders on a Reform invasion.
— Don McGowan (@donmcgowan) October 24, 2025