Laurence Fox – The Reclaim Party

At a glance

Laurence Fox is one of the record 34 candidates appearing on the Clacton ballot paper. He has previously contested elections in London and Uxbridge and is the registered leader of The Reclaim Party.

Candidate Laurence Fox

Ballot Description The Reclaim Party

Main 2026 Theme Freedom of Speech

Previous Recorded Elections 3

Free Speech Civil Liberties Immigration Anti-Establishment Reclaim Leader Previous Candidate

Why Laurence Fox says he is standing in Clacton

Fox’s official Clacton campaign is substantially more focused than a conventional constituency manifesto. The central argument is that freedom of speech is under threat and that voters should use the by-election to defend political expression.

1

Freedom of speech

Fox describes freedom of speech as the basic liberty from which other freedoms flow. His leaflet tells voters that he is standing to defend their right to think, speak and hold opinions, including opinions with which he disagrees.

2

The absence of major parties

Fox criticises the major Westminster parties for not fielding candidates in the Clacton contest. He argues that political parties should contest elections and allow voters to hear competing arguments rather than leave the field.

3

Immigration and borders

His current material refers to what he calls uncontrolled mass immigration and open borders. The leaflet does not, however, provide a detailed Clacton-specific immigration policy or a numerical migration target.

4

Challenging the establishment

Fox presents his campaign as opposition to political and media establishments that he believes suppress difficult subjects or discourage open debate.

Fox on the contest: His official campaign says that although he disagrees with Nigel Farage on many things, voters should hear arguments and counter-arguments in public rather than see political parties opt out of the election.

Published campaign priorities

The current Clacton campaign material reviewed by Clacton.org does not present a conventional ten or twenty point local manifesto. These are the themes that are clearly identifiable from his official page and election communication.

Free speech

Stronger protection for the ability of individuals to express political and controversial opinions without what Fox considers excessive state, institutional or social punishment.

Political participation

Fox links free elections directly to freedom of expression and argues that established parties refusing to contest Clacton weakens democratic debate.

Immigration debate

He argues that concerns about immigration, borders and grooming gangs must be openly discussed rather than treated as subjects people should avoid.

Opposition to censorship

Reclaim has long positioned itself against what it sees as censorship, excessive political correctness and restrictions on controversial political speech.

National identity

Reclaim’s broader politics emphasise patriotism, British identity and opposition to political and cultural developments that the party believes weaken national cohesion.

Anti-establishment politics

Fox repeatedly criticises Westminster institutions and what he describes as a political “Uni-Party”, arguing that major parties have become too similar on important cultural and institutional questions.

What about Clacton’s local issues?

This is where Fox’s current campaign differs significantly from several of the local and independent candidates. His published Clacton material is primarily about free speech and national political issues rather than a detailed programme for the constituency.

Detailed proposals were not found in the current campaign material reviewed for:

GP and NHS dentistry access
Clacton’s elderly population and social care
Support for unpaid carers
Housing and affordable local homes
Jobs and apprenticeships
Youth opportunities
Antisocial behaviour and local policing
Local buses and hospital transport
Clacton town centre regeneration
Support for local businesses
Coastal protection and flooding
How constituency surgeries would operate

Clacton.org assessment

This does not mean Fox has no views on these subjects. It means that detailed Clacton-specific proposals on these issues were not identified in the official campaign page, election leaflet and candidate material reviewed for this profile.

If Laurence Fox or The Reclaim Party supplies additional local policies, Clacton.org can add them to this page.

Laurence Fox’s Clacton election leaflet

Both sides of the Reclaim Party’s 2026 Clacton election communication were uploaded to ElectionLeaflets.org on 6 August 2026. The archive states that leaflet images on the site are made available under a public domain dedication.

Front: “Freedom of Speech. Use it or lose it.”

Reverse: Fox’s statement explaining why he is standing in Clacton.

View Leaflet Archive

The Reclaim Party

Party leadership

The Electoral Commission currently records Laurence Fox as both leader and nominating officer of The Reclaim Party. Gordon Davies is listed as party treasurer.

The party is authorised on the Great Britain register and is registered to field candidates in England, Scotland and Wales.

Origins

The organisation was registered in 2019 under the name Brexit Express. The Electoral Commission authorised the change of its primary name to The Reclaim Party in February 2021.

Fox became the public face and leader of the party as it developed around free speech, culture, identity and anti-establishment politics.

An unusual political relationship: Nigel Farage and Reform UK backed Fox’s campaign for Mayor of London in 2021. Reclaim later supported Reform UK ahead of the 2024 general election. Fox is now standing directly against Farage in Clacton.

Previous election record

Fox has contested several prominent elections but has not previously been elected to public office.

Year	Election	Party	Result	Notes
2021	Mayor of London	Reclaim	47,634 first preference votes, 1.9%	Finished sixth and did not retain the £10,000 candidate deposit. Reform UK and Nigel Farage supported his candidacy.
2023	Uxbridge and South Ruislip parliamentary by-election	The Reclaim Party	714 votes, 2.3%	Finished fourth of 17 candidates and did not retain the parliamentary election deposit.
2024	London Assembly, London-wide	Independent	13,795 votes, approximately 0.56%	Not elected. Fox had also intended to stand for Mayor of London, but errors in his mayoral nomination papers meant that candidacy did not proceed.
2026	Clacton parliamentary by-election	The Reclaim Party	Result pending	One of a record 34 candidates. Polling day is Thursday 13 August 2026.

Public controversies and legal record

Fox is a high-profile and controversial political figure. These matters form part of his public record and are included because voters may reasonably consider them relevant when assessing a parliamentary candidate.

Broadcasting

GB News and Ava Evans

Fox made derogatory comments about political journalist Ava Evans during a September 2023 edition of Dan Wootton Tonight on GB News.

GB News suspended Fox and subsequently terminated his contract. Ofcom later concluded that the programme breached broadcasting rules on generally accepted standards, describing the comments as degrading and demeaning to Evans and to women generally.

Ofcom received 8,867 complaints about the programme.

Read the Ofcom ruling

Defamation

Blake and Seymour case

A High Court case arose from a 2020 social media argument in which Simon Blake and Colin Seymour called Fox a racist and Fox responded by calling each of them a paedophile.

The courts upheld the claims against Fox. In October 2025 the Court of Appeal upheld Fox’s liability for his statements, while allowing his appeal concerning his own counterclaims to continue.

Fox sought permission to appeal his liability to the UK Supreme Court. Permission was refused on 22 May 2026.

UK Supreme Court case record

Important: This section distinguishes court findings from accusations or allegations. Where criminal proceedings or allegations have not resulted in a conviction, they should not be presented as proof of guilt.

Political position

Right Clacton.org editorial estimate

Far Left Left Centre Right Far Right

Clacton.org currently places Fox on the political right. This is an editorial estimate based on his published political positions, Reclaim Party material and political history. It is not a description supplied or approved by Laurence Fox or The Reclaim Party.

Candidate links

Reclaim Clacton Page X Facebook Instagram Who Can I Vote For? All 34 Candidates

Sources and further reading

This profile has been rebuilt from official election records, candidate material, regulatory decisions and court records. Candidate statements are identified as such rather than presented automatically as established fact.