Nigel Farage’s Reform UK claims 269,000 members, overtaking Labour in significant political shift

Reform UK has announced it has become Britain’s largest political party by membership count, marking a dramatic transformation in the nation’s political landscape.

Nigel Farage, Reform’s leader, proclaimed “the age of two-party politics is dead” following the revelation that Labour’s membership has dropped below 250,000—significantly fewer than Reform’s reported 269,000 members. Farage described this as “a huge milestone” for his party, which has maintained strong polling numbers throughout the year, currently averaging around 30 percent support—roughly 10 points ahead of both Labour and the Conservatives.

Labour’s membership decline represents a steep fall from its peak under Sir Keir Starmer’s initial leadership in 2020, when the party boasted over 500,000 paying members, making it Europe’s largest political organization. By February of this year, that figure had dropped to 309,000, and leaked documents obtained by The Times now indicate it has fallen below 250,000. Labour has not challenged these numbers publicly, though the party maintains it only releases official membership statistics in its annual report.

The exodus appears linked to several factors, including the departure of Jeremy Corbyn, who now leads Your Party with 50,000 members, as well as Labour’s struggles in public opinion and controversy surrounding recent budget proposals. Labour keeps its membership figures closely guarded, withholding them even from its National Executive Committee to prevent leaks.

Labour’s polling difficulties have sparked speculation about potential challenges to Sir Keir Starmer’s leadership. Names circulating as possible successors include Health Secretary Wes Streeting, former deputy prime minister Angela Rayner, Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham, Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood, and Energy Secretary Ed Miliband. Downing Street has indicated that Sir Keir would actively contest any leadership challenge rather than stepping aside voluntarily, though this announcement appears to have intensified rather than quieted the speculation.

Reform’s ascent in membership figures follows its earlier surpassing of the Conservative Party on Boxing Day last year. The Conservatives currently report 123,000 members, having experienced their own wave of defections to Reform, including prominent figures such as former party chairman Sir Jake Berry, ex-Cabinet minister Nadine Dorries, East Wiltshire MP Danny Kruger, and most recently, former Conservative MP Ben Bradley.

Other parties have seen varied membership trends. The Green Party has experienced substantial growth, expanding from 126,000 to 180,000 members since October. Meanwhile, the Liberal Democrats report 83,174 members, representing a slight decline from the previous year.