Nigel Farage faces more election woes as a human fox joins Count Binface in the Clacton by-election circus to protest the Reform UK leader’s hunting record
Nigel Farage’s bid to win back his seat has descended into a circus after a man dressed as a giant fox vowed to gatecrash the by-election. Wildlife campaigner Robert Pownall, 27, is dusting off his famous furry outfit to take on the Reform UK leader in Clacton.
He joins intergalactic space warrior Count Binface in a race that has turned into a farce. But Pownall, founder of Protect the Wild, insists he has a serious point to make about Farage’s love for country sports.
Pownall told the Metro: “The storyline of this by-election is one of the most famous politicians of a generation standing for parliament against a man with a bin on his head.
“Now he is going to have to do the same with a man in a fox costume. It is funny and silly. But the difference between me and Count Binface is there is a serious cause behind what I am doing.”
Farage previously branded ministers “authoritarian control freaks” over plans to ban trail hunting and even attended a festive hunt last Christmas.
Reform’s manifesto also pledged to protect “country sports” and scrap thousands of EU environmental laws.
Fuming Pownall added: “The framing of this whole election is Farage vs the establishment. That p***es me off beyond belief. You cannot get any more establishment than Farage, who supports fox hunting.
“How can you claim to be this man of the people, when he supports pastimes that involve ripping apart animals?”
He added: “I am standing to ensure British wildlife gets a voice. This is a good opportunity to put these issues on the map.”
The burnt-out activist admits he will do “as little as possible” during the campaign and joked it would be “funny” if Count Binface actually won.
Voters are also warned not to confuse the human fox with controversial Reclaim candidate Laurence Fox.
Farage triggered the by-election by quitting as an MP to “stick two fingers up to the entire establishment” following a string of scandals.
He is currently being investigated over claims he failed to properly declare a £5 million gift from a crypto billionaire, and faces questions over his links to convicted criminal aristocrat George Cottrell.