Reform UK Wins Three Seats Amid Right-Wing Vote Split

Reform UK won three local council seats in six English by-elections held on Thursday, though the party experienced a decline in vote shares across five contested wards compared to May results. The most significant drop occurred in the Huncoat ward of Hyndburn Borough Council, where the party's share fell from 49.2 percent to 29.8 percent.

Reform UK faced new competition from Restore Britain, a party founded by Rupert Lowe that captured a significant portion of right-wing votes. While Reform UK deputy leader Richard Tice characterized the results as strong, citing an average vote share of 34.3 percent, the party lost the Bosmere seat in Suffolk to the Conservative Party. The Labour Party won two seats during the cycle.

Rupert Lowe described the outcome for Restore Britain as astonishing, suggesting the results in Hyndburn demonstrate that voters can successfully elect candidates from his new party.