By-election date confirmed for "first test" of Reform UK’s Kent County Council
Voters will head to the polls next month in the first by-election to be held since Reform UK took control of Kent County Council.
The by-election for Cliftonville has been set for April 9, the local authority has confirmed.
It comes as ex-Reform UK councillor Daniel Taylor, of Ramsgate, Kent, was jailed for 12 months last month after admitting controlling and coercive behaviour towards his wife.
The 36-year-old was suspended from Reform after his arrest in June last year and expelled after he pleaded guilty to the crime in January.
Reform won control of Kent County Council (KCC) in May last year, securing 57 out of 81 seats, but is currently down to 47 after removing some of them.
In the Cliftonville seat, the party won 40% of the vote, followed by Labour and the Conservatives behind them with 22% and 20% of the vote respectively.
A Reform UK spokesman said: "The people of Cliftonville deserve a strong Reform UK councillor to represent them in Kent County Council. We look forward to announcing our candidate in due course."
It comes as seven former Reform councillors have joined Rupert Lowe's new political party Restore Britain and created a new group at Kent County Council last month.
Challengers for the by-election already announced include Rob Yates for the Green Party, Dr Mo Shafaei for the Liberal Democrats and Charlie Leys for the Conservatives.
Endorsing Mr Leys, former South Thanet MP and now Lord Craig Mackinlay appealed to Tory voters who were "seduced by the Reform message" to "come back home".
The Conservative peer added that the ward returned a Reform councillor and "that's gone horribly wrong and that's why we've got a by-election".
KCC's Conservative group leader Harry Rayner said the party is already campaigning and it is going to be a "really interesting" by-election given how the outgoing councillor lost his seat.
The local authority's leader of the opposition and Liberal Democrats group leader Antony Hook said people in Cliftonville "deserve better" than they had under Reform, adding: "Lib Dem Dr Shafaei will be the local champion people need."
Labour will be launching its campaign and revealing its candidate on Saturday.
Labour KCC group leader Alister Brady said: "We will have a candidate who is a local champion - who already does a lot to better the community they call home.
"So much trust has been lost because of the previous Reform councillor and this must be regained so Cliftonville residents can be given the support they deserve and need."
Parties have until March 11 to put forward their candidates.