UKIP’s Nigel Farage claims election was rigged after losing out
UKIP leader Nigel Farage has made allegations of electoral fraud, after his party failed to win a by-election.
The UK Independence Party leader made the claim following this week’s by-election in Oldham West and Royton, which was trigged by the death of Labour MP Michael Meacher.
The race was tipped to be a close contest between Labour and UKIP – but Labour held the seat and increased its share of the vote significantly since May’s election.
Mr Farage said: “As a veteran of over thirty by-elections I have never seen such a perverse result. Serious questions need to be asked.
“Evidence from an impeccable source that today’s postal voting was bent.”
The politician told the BBC he had seen “people turning up at polling stations with bundles of postal votes”, claiming: “Somebody was harnessing the postal votes.”
He also blamed the area’s large migrant communities for the result, claiming: “The electoral process is now dead in those areas.”
Labour deputy leader Tom Watson accused Mr Farage of “sour grapes” over the claims, adding: “If he has got evidence of that, he should have told the police immediately”.
It is not the first time the UKIP leader has made controversial comments in recent weeks.
He claimed last week that he had been “proven right” after calling for people with HIV to be banned from the UK. claiming that “HIV sufferers” have been hit by a drug shortage because of migration.
A spokesperson for NHS England confirmed: “We have not been made aware of any capacity or drug shortage issues in HIV clinics.”
