How many councillors has Reform UK lost since the May 2026 elections?

Given how popular (and lengthy!) my list of Reform councillor departures after the May 2025 elections turned out to be, here is a new list, this time for councillors elected under the Reform banner on 7 May 2026, or in by-elections after that date, who have already departed the party for one reason or another.

Reform UK councillor defects to Restore Britain

A Reform UK councillor in Leicestershire has defected to a new party recently launched by MP Rupert Lowe.

Charles Whitford, previously a member of Leicestershire County Council’s cabinet, announced he had moved to Restore Britain on Thursday.

Two Northants Reform UK councillors quit party to join new rival

More musical chairs as two North unitary councillors quit Reform UK to join Restore Britain

Two Reform UK councillors on North Northamptonshire Council have sensationally quit the party today to join a newly formed rival.

Cllr Jack Goncalvez (Rushden Lakes ward) and Darren Rance (Brickhill & Queensway ward) have been announced as new councillors by the Restore Britain party, which was launched on Friday evening by former Reform UK MP Rupert Lowe.

They follow a number of other councillors from Kent County Council in joining the new party, with Cllr Goncalvez accusing his former party of ‘courting the establishment it claims to oppose’.

Councillor quits ‘sinister’ Restore Britain after just two days

A North Northamptonshire local councillor has quit Restore Britain just two days day after defecting to it from Reform, describing Rupert Lowe’s new party “far more sinister than I first thought”.

Cllr Darren Rance, who represents Brickhill and Queensway, announced on Wednesday that he and fellow councillor Jack Goncalvez were leaving Reform to join Restore Britain, the hard‑right party announced by Rupert Lowe last week.

Kent county councillor from Margate jailed over years of controlling abuse of wife

A Kent county councillor has been jailed for 12 months after admitting to subjecting his wife to years of controlling and coercive behaviour.

Daniel Taylor, 35, from Margate, was sentenced at Margate Magistrates’ Court today after pleading guilty at an earlier hearing.

Reform UK expels three more Kent county councillors for ‘dishonest and deceptive’ behaviour

Reform UK has expelled another three county councillors from the party this afternoon alleging “a pattern of dishonest and deceptive behaviour”.

The dismissals of Cllrs Brian Black, Paul Thomas and Oliver Bradshaw brings to five the number of expulsions from the Kent County Council group in the past four days.

Reform UK expels three more Kent county councillors for ‘dishonest and deceptive’ behaviour, Kent Online

#BrianBlack #Kent #OliverBradshaw #PaulThomas #Quiting #vettingFail

Five Reform UK councillors booted out of party

Five Reform UK county councillors have been expelled from the party for bringing it into “disrepute” and displaying a “lack of integrity”.

Kent councillors Bill Barrett and Robert Ford, who criticised the party’s “toxic” and “incompetent” leadership, were kicked out by email from Reform HQ, which said they had undermined the interests of the party.

Councillors Oliver Bradshaw, Brian Black, and Paul Thomas were also expelled for showing “a pattern of dishonest and deceptive behaviour which the party will not tolerate”, Reform UK said.

It comes after a damaging video leak showing the Reform UK leader of Kent County Council (KCC) Linden Kemkaran swearing and shouting during a council meeting.

Five Reform UK councillors booted out of party. BBC

#BillBarrett #BrianBlack #LindenKemkaran #OliverBradshaw #PaulThomas #Quiting #RobertFord #vettingFail

Kent shows Reform does not know how to govern

The problems that the council is facing suggests Nigel Farage’s party is far from ready to exercise power

[…]

For Reform, east of Edenbridge became an Eden; during a fractious internal party meeting during which council members attempted to discuss the budget, leaked by councillors, leader of the council Linden Kemkaran said: “We are a shop window. People are judging us every single minute of every single day – Nigel knows that, he is super aware that we are the flagship council.”

But like Eden, not everyone is capable of indefinitely living in paradise. Four members were initially suspended under suspicion of leaking the video, and five have now been removed from the party for bringing it into “disrepute” and displaying a “lack of integrity”.

Kent shows Reform does not know how to govern, telegraph.co.uk

#Kent #LindenKemkaran #Quiting #vettingFail

How many councillors has Reform UK lost since May? (36)

Here is a list of the councillors which Reform has shed from the May 2025 local elections. The latest updates are the addition of three more defections in Cornwall, reinforcing Reform’s loss of largest party status on the council, plus also another three expulsions in Kent. Plus bonus news from Grantham…

How many councillors has Reform UK lost since May?, Mark Pack

#Quiting

Reform UK suspends four Kent councillors after leaked video

Party accuses council members of bringing Reform ‘into disrepute’ as film of private meeting shows fractious dispute

Reform UK has suspended four of its Kent councillors after a video was leaked of the council’s leader telling her colleagues to “suck it up”.

Reform UK suspends four Kent councillors after leaked video, ft.com

#BillBarrett #Kent #LindenKemkaran #MaxineFothergill #OliverBradshaw #PaulThomas #Quiting #vettingFail