Reform UK candidate drops out and backs Tories amid racism row
Liam Booth-Isherwood announced he was dropping out of the race for Erewash and would instead be endorsing the Tory contender, Maggie Throup.
A Reform UK candidate has criticised a “failure of leadership” amid allegations of racism within the party as he stepped down and backed the Conservatives in another blow to Nigel Farage’s campaign.
Liam Booth-Isherwood, who was standing in the seat of Erewash, announced he was dropping out of the race and would instead be endorsing Tory contender Maggie Throup to “stop Labour”.
The candidate said he had become “increasingly disillusioned” with the behaviour of the party, which he suggested pointed to a “significant moral issue” within its ranks.
But he has urged voters in the Derbyshire constituency to support the Conservative candidate Ms Throup, who has represented Erewash since 2015.
Mr Booth-Isherwood said in a statement: “I am today announcing my decision to leave the Reform Party and have suspended my campaign as the Reform candidate for Erewash with immediate effect.
“Over the past few weeks, I have been increasingly disillusioned with the behaviour and conduct of Reform.
“As a result, I am announcing my endorsement of the Conservative Party candidate, Maggie Throup, for Erewash. Only she can stop Labour.”
Party chairman Richard Tice claimed the switch in support suggested that Conservatives were offering jobs and inducements to Reform candidates “to persuade them to talk badly of Reform, stand down and then endorse the Tory candidate”.
“This shows dark forces at play by desperate Tories,” he wrote in a post on X, formerly Twitter.
It comes after Mr Farage faced accusations from across the political divide of failing to tackle allegations of racism within Reform which have engulfed the party in recent days.
Addressing a rally in Birmingham earlier on Sunday, the party leader insisted that “the bad apples are gone” after withdrawing support for three candidates over the row.
Another activist described the Pride flag as “degenerate” and suggested members of the LGBT community are paedophiles.
Mr Farage has suggested that the Channel 4 footage is a “set-up” – a claim the broadcaster strenuously denies.
They will also appear on the ballot paper but have lost party backing.
Channel 4 hit back at the suggestion it had paid Mr Parker to be in the footage, with a spokesperson for the broadcaster saying: “We met Mr Parker for the first time at Reform UK party headquarters, where he was a Reform party canvasser.”
The Tories said that if 130,000 voters joined the Reform UK candidate who switched to back the Conservatives “it would be enough to stop Labour’s supermajority”.
“Mr Booth-Isherwood knows a vote for Reform is a vote for Keir Starmer,” a party spokesman said.
A Labour spokesperson said: “This is further proof that the only way to get the change we need is to vote Labour on July 4.
“After 14 years of Tory chaos, Labour is the only party with a plan for economic security, secure borders, the NHS back on its feet, cheaper bills, safer streets and better opportunities for our children.”
Ms Throup said she was “delighted” that Mr Booth-Isherwood was backing her campaign, saying in a post on X: “He has taken the brave step to make a stand agaist some of the serious issues we have seen within certain elements of the Reform Party, and I commend him for this.”
