Nigel Farage, the broadcaster and populist politician who championed Brexit, said on Thursday that he would not run for a seat in the British Parliament in a general election on July 4, preferring to focus on helping former President Donald J. Trump recapture the White House in November. Mr. Farage’s announcement is likely to be a modest relief for Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and his Conservative Party, since Mr. Farage’s current party, Reform UK, is viewed as a significant threat to the Conservatives from the right. But Mr. Farage said he would “do my bit” to help Reform, which plans to field a slate of candidates in the election, running on an anti-immigration message. “Important though the general election is,” Mr. Farage posted on social media, “the contest in the United States of America on Nov. 5 has huge global significance. Mr. Trump once suggested that the British government appoint Mr. Farage as ambassador to Washington.

Source: The Times May 23, 2024 15:16 UTC