Reform UK is still recruiting candidates for next month’s local elections, even as the deadline for nominations approaches.
At a rally at the Norfolk Showground last week, party chairman David Bull urged supporters to come forward, calling it a chance to “change British political history”. Those interested were invited to apply online or sign up at a stall set up at the event.
The timing is difficult to ignore. With nominations closing on April 9, the party has yet to confirm a full list of candidates across all 84 seats on Norfolk County Council and the wards up for election in Norwich City Council.
That gap comes after Reform was among the loudest voices opposing government plans to postpone the elections due to the cost and disruption of local government reorganisation. Having pushed for the vote to go ahead, the party is now racing to fill its own candidate list.
Momentum meets reality
Polls suggest Reform could make major gains in Norfolk, with some predicting it could take control of County Hall. The Conservatives, who currently hold 51 seats, are expected to suffer heavy losses.
But this would not be Reform’s first experience of power. Across England, the party made major breakthroughs in last year’s local elections, taking control of a number of councils. That first year in office has offered an early test of how Reform governs in practice.
Promises and pressure
In several of those councils, campaign promises have collided quickly with financial reality.
Pledges to keep council tax low have, in some cases, been followed by increases at or near the maximum allowed. At the same time, councils have faced difficult decisions on spending, particularly in areas such as adult social care and community provision – services that are both costly and politically sensitive.
In some areas, those pressures have been acute. In Worcestershire, a Reform-led administration sought permission to raise council tax by up to 9% – among the highest increases in England – despite the party campaigning on cutting costs. Nigel Farage later said the party “wished it hadn’t bothered” taking control of what he described as a “virtually bankrupt” council.
From campaign to reality
That remark is revealing. It suggests a recognition, after the fact, of the scale of the challenge involved in running a financially stretched authority.
It also raises a broader question. Reform has been most successful in areas where councils face significant financial pressure – but those are also the hardest places to govern. The experience in Worcestershire highlights the tension between winning control of such authorities and managing the consequences once in office.
That message sits alongside a broader theme in Reform’s campaigning. Last year’s local elections were fought on the claim that “your council is broken” and that Reform would fix it. This year, the message has expanded to “Britain is broken”.
The experience in places where the party has already taken control suggests that governing those systems is more complicated than the slogan implies – and rarely offers quick wins.
A churn of councillors
There have also been issues beyond budgets. Since last May’s elections, a notable number of Reform councillors across the country have resigned, been suspended, or otherwise left their roles. In some areas, that has been linked to internal disputes; in others, to problems emerging after selection.
That level of churn matters. County councils depend on stable groups of councillors able to manage large and complex organisations. Frequent departures place additional strain on already stretched systems and can carry a direct financial cost through by-elections to fill vacancies.
It also raises questions about how quickly candidates have been selected – and how thoroughly they have been vetted. With Reform pushing hard for these elections to go ahead and now working to complete its list close to the deadline, the time available for scrutiny has been shorter than it might otherwise have been.
A party still building
In Norfolk, the list of candidates is still taking shape. Robin Hunter-Clarke, the party’s Norfolk co-ordinator, is among those who have defected from the Conservatives in recent months. Julian Kirk followed a similar route, resigning before winning his seat back as a Reform councillor.
Alongside them are first-time candidates, including Jaden Listen, who announced his candidacy at the rally, describing the election as a “last chance” for the county – without specifying ‘last chance’ for what without making clear what he meant by that.
Two Attleborough town councillors, Daniel Burcham and Jacob Allen, also appeared as prospective candidates.
The mix reflects a party expanding quickly but still assembling its team.
Governing, not campaigning
That distinction matters.
County councils are responsible for some of the most complex services in local government, from social care to transport and education, often across large and geographically diverse areas. Winning an election is one challenge. Running those services, balancing budgets and managing long-term pressures is another.
Where parties make rapid gains, councils can find themselves run by large numbers of newly elected councillors with limited experience of how those systems operate. That pattern has already been seen in some of the authorities Reform took control of last year, where the transition from campaigning to governing has exposed significant challenges.
A short window, high stakes
There is also the question of timing.
Any council elected this May will serve during a period of major structural change, as Norfolk moves towards a new system of local government. That makes the next administration, in effect, a transitional one, with limited time to establish itself before further changes take place.
For a party still building its local base, that is yet another layer of difficulty.
The question for voters
Reform has tapped into a clear appetite for change in Norfolk. Its message is resonating, and its momentum is real. But voters are not being asked simply whether they want change. They are being asked who they trust to deliver it.
Reform argued strongly that these elections should go ahead. It now faces the test of whether it is ready. Its record elsewhere suggests it has yet to demonstrate that it is.
