Some of Britain’s comedy political candidates proved to be only slightly more of a joke than the actual governing party on Thursday night.
The incumbent Conservative Party was crushed in a general election which saw their Labour rivals sweep to power in a landslide win after 14 years in opposition—with several major Tory figures losing their seats along the way. Adding to their humiliation, in some cases, was the indignity of making their concession speeches alongside truly bizarre rival candidates.
Conservative candidate Jacob Rees-Mogg stands next to Barmy Brunch from The Official Monster Raving Loony Party during the declaration for the North East Somerset constituency.
Finnbarr Webster/Getty ImagesTake, for example, Jacob Rees-Mogg, a prominent Conservative lawmaker who enjoyed several roles in government before losing his seat in southwest England overnight. After delivering his concession speech in the race for the North East Somerset and Hanham district, Rees-Mogg shook hands with a man wearing a balaclava decorated with baked beans.
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That would be Barmy Brunch, the Monster Raving Loony Party candidate—a party whose manifesto called for members of parliament to have custard pies thrown at them when meeting their constituents, and for 10 Downing Street to be transformed into a hair salon named “Government CutZ.”
The absurd spectacle was far from unique.
Sunak managed to retain his own seat in the north of England, but used his personal victory speech to concede the national election had been a “sobering verdict” on his government. As he apologized to his fellow Conservatives and accepted responsibility for the party’s worst ever result, he stood alongside Count Binface—a self-described intergalactic space warrior who, as the name describes, has a garbage can for a head. He’d called for a ban on noisy snacks in cinemas and theaters and advocated for European countries to be invited to join the U.K.
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer gives a victory speech watched by Nick the Incredible Flying Brick and Bobby "Elmo" Smith at the headquarters of Camden Council at 5 Pancras Square in Camden, north London, after he was declared winner of the Holborn and St Pancras constituency in the 2024 General Election.
Stefan Rousseau/PA Images via Getty ImagesThe satirical character came sixth out of 13 candidates, but nevertheless hailed the 308 votes he received. #BindependenceDay has come,” he wrote in an X post. Binface wasn’t the only person rubbing salt in Sunak’s wound—YouTube prankster Niko Omilana stood behind the outgoing prime minister and unfurled a sign with the letter “L” on it as Sunak spoke. “[F]arewell rishi, hold this L,” he posted after the stunt. Omilana received 160 votes.
Rishi Sunak speaks alongside Count Binface after winning his seat at Richmond and Northallerton during the UK election.
Temilade Adelaja/ReutersIn contrast to Sunak’s dismal evening, Labour leader Keir Starmer was having a grand old time as he won his seat—one of the at least 412 seats his party took in their landslide victory. As Starmer won his London district, Holborn and St. Pancras, with 48.9 percent of the vote, he was congratulated by a man dressed as Elmo. Bobby Smith, an independent candidate who’s dressed as the Sesame Street character for a decade while campaigning to reform British family law, got just 19 votes.
The visual was nevertheless pretty funny. Starmer, realizing he was about to score a historic victory for Labour in the national election, paid a magnanimous tribute to the other candidates who’d run in his district. “In this room, right here, beats the heart of our democracy,” he said, as Elmo stood next to him.
Elsewhere, a pub managed to avoid coming last in the London district of Richmond Park. Landlord Chris French, who said he’d decided to put The Mitre pub into the race to “get the free advertising on 77,000 ballot papers,” got 349 votes, besting the Social Democratic Party candidate’s haul of 233.
