Ex-Tory MP Andrea Jenkyns could be disqualified as Reform UK candidate (2025)

94 shares

Dame Andrea Jenkyns could be disqualified as Reform UK's candidate for mayor of Lincolnshire following claims she has lied about her address.

The former Conservative minister faces an investigation by election chiefs after complaints that she does not live in the area.

Dame Andrea defected to Nigel Farage's party last year after losing her Yorkshire seat at the general election before announcing she would stand for the mayoralty.

The race is expected to be a close fight between the Conservatives and Reform. Should she win on May 1, she would hold Reform's most powerful elected office to date.

To stand, a candidate must live in the area. While she appears on the electoral register in Lincolnshire, complaints have been made that she does not actually live there.

Dame Andrea has given several interviews in which she has admitted she lives in Leeds.

She has said she will move to Lincolnshire 'full time' if she wins the election, suggesting that she does not live there currently.

Last month, she told Lincolnshire Live: 'I have got a place I rent, but I have a son with special needs, and any parent wouldn't pull their child out of school until they know they've won. If I win on 1 May, I will move here full time.'

It is a criminal offence to make false claims on the electoral register or to make a false statement on nomination papers.

Yesterday, the Electoral Registration Officer confirmed that a formal objection had been made regarding her entry on the electoral register.

A spokesman for the returning officer overseeing the election said: 'A formal objection has been received by the North Kesteven Electoral Registration Officer in relation to an individual registration on the Electoral Register and the statutory process is being followed.'

If they determine that the complaint is valid, the officer must now hold a hearing to determine whether to uphold the objection, which could lead to the disqualification of the candidate.

In her manifesto, Dame Andrea has vowed to establish a Lincolnshire 'DOGE' to control public spending, as Tesla boss Elon Musk has done in the US.

The Conservatives have attacked her for living in Leeds, which she moved to as the former Tory MP for Morley and Outwood.

However, she has argued that she lived in Lincolnshire from the age of seven until she became an MP.

The regional mayoralty comes with an investment fund worth £720million over the next 20 years and powers over skills and transport.

Reform has performed well in Lincolnshire, with Richard Tice becoming MP for Boston and Skegness at the general election and a number of former Conservative councillors have defected to the party.

However, the Tories hold eight of the 12 parliamentary constituencies and held half of the council seats across Greater Lincolnshire in last May's elections.

Dame Andrea did not respond to a request for comment but has previously complained about suggestions that she does not live in the area.

A Reform UK spokesman said: 'We understand a vexatious and politically motivated complaint has been made by the relative of a candidate in the same election that Andrea Jenkyns is contesting in an attempt to deprive the people of Lincolnshire the chance to vote for Reform UK.

'We are confident that this complaint will be dismissed.'

Add your comment