Reform UK candidate Mark Matlock has appeared on GB News to prove that his party didn’t field ‘AI’ candidates in the UK General Election.
Nigel Farage’s party has insisted that every one of its 609 candidates on 4th July was real after suspicions were raised about the so-called “paper candidates” who stood in the election.
Multiple candidates who did no campaigning and were there simply to help increase the party’s vote share were entered in the election, helping the party to pick up thousands of votes that added to their overall numbers.
But suspicions had been raised over whether some of the candidates even existed, with rumours circulating on social media that Reform UK had entered ‘AI candidates’ in the election.
Matlock, who stood as the candidate for Clapham and Brixton Hill, garnered considerable attention after not attending hustings or the vote count on election eve.
He has admitted to Private Eye that the picture he used for his campaign leaflet was AI-generated because he didn’t have a picture of himself in Reform’s turquoise tie, but has gone on the front foot to prove his existence, chatting to numerous journalists and appearing on GB News to put the rumours to bed.
It comes as Reform UK’s five MPs arrived for their first day in Westminster on Tuesday (9/7), with Nigel Farage taking a seat at the eighth time of asking.
The group of five men, including party chairman Richard Tice and former Tory MP Lee Anderson, had been expected to stage a Reservoir Dogs-style entrance to Westminster, referring to the Quentin Tarantino film about a failed diamond heist.
The other new arrivals were Rupert Lowe, former chairman of Southampton FC and now MP for Great Yarmouth, and James McMurdock, a 38-year-old former banker who unexpectedly edged the contest in South Basildon and East Thurrock by 98 votes.
The men paused for photographs by Parliament’s St Stephen’s Entrance, but made no statement to the press. Responding to a shout of “Have fun” from a photographer, Mr Tice replied: “We will.”
The group then entered Parliament, a member of Commons staff placing a green-and-white MP’s lanyard around Mr Farage’s neck.
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