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Over the past few days, Reform UK has come under pressure to prove that all its 609 candidates were real people.

The conspiracies about whether Nigel Farage’s right-wing party had put up ‘fake’ candidates for election began swirling earlier this week, after it came to light that their candidate for Clapham and Brixton Hill had used an AI-generated photo on his leaflet and had been conspicuously absent from both the campaign trail and the election night count.

This prompted other social media users to note that many other Reform candidates across the country had not led visible campaigns and been absent from their respective counts too, sparking theories that Reform had allowed ‘fake’ candidates to stand for election across the country.

It’s hard to pass up the chance to dunk on the right-wing cranks of the Reform party, but is there really any truth behind these allegations? Here, we examine the evidence.

IS MARK MATLOCK A REAL PERSON?

The trouble started when people on X noticed that a Reform campaign leaflet featured a blatantly AI-generated photo of their candidate for Clapham and Brixton Hill, Mark Matlock. The image was described by Private Eye as “resembling a character from CBeebies’ LazyTown”. 

However, Matlock is very much a real person. “I am a real person,” he told Private Eye. 

He admitted to The Guardian that the image used on his campaign leaflet was AI-generated, owing to the fact he did not have a real photo of himself wearing a turquoise tie. (He is yet to explain why he couldn’t just take a photo of himself wearing a turquoise tie).

The AI image aside, residents in Clapham and Brixton Hill had also fuelled the theory that Matlock wasn’t real due to his lack of campaigning in the area. But this too was cleared up by Private Eye, who noted that Matlock lives in the South Cotswolds – some 100 miles away from the south London constituency where he stood to be elected.

Additionally, some noted that Matlock was not present at the vote count on election night, supposedly because he was suffering from pneumonia. In a bid to clear up the confusion over whether he was a real person or not, Matlock posted a video of himself dancing around his kitchen on July 8 – prompting further speculation over whether he really had pneumonia, as it generally takes weeks to recover from the condition.

When one user responded to the video pointing out that Richard Tice had told Robert Peston that Matlock nearly died on election night, Matlock responded: “Oh boy, yes I did. But you know the sweetest thing is the inspiration you very people have given me to revive and come around.”

WHAT ABOUT THE OTHER ‘FAKE’ CANDIDATES?

Whether Matlock was serious about becoming an MP or not, there’s now no doubt that he is a real person.

But he isn’t the only Reform candidate whose existence has been up for debate. Many have questioned the validity of other candidates across the country, such as Helen Burns, the candidate for Glasgow North, Morag McRae, the candidate for Glasgow South West, Kiera Alice Hubbard, the candidate for Garston and Halewood, Ryan Powell, the candidate for Sutton and Cheam, and many more.

Candidates like these are suspected to be fake as their profiles on the Reform website only show their name and constituency, without any further information about them or contact details beyond a generic regional email address. In addition, many of these candidates have no visible online presence, did not appear to do any campaigning, and did not show up at their respective counts on election night.

Byline Times is currently investigating the situation, claiming that there are at least 80 other Reform candidates who have not been identified or have other potential issues with their declaration.

IS IT ILLEGAL TO PUT UP A FAKE CANDIDATE IN A GENERAL ELECTION?

In the UK, to stand as a candidate in a general election, you must be at least 18 years old, a British citizen, and not hold a job that disqualifies you – such as a police officer, civil servant, judge, or member of the armed forces. You are also required to be a real, alive person. 

Candidates must receive nomination signatures from ten voters registered in the constituency where you are standing. These nomination papers must be delivered by hand to the returning officer, either by the candidate or their election agent who can act on their behalf. 

It is a criminal offence for someone to knowingly make a false statement on a nomination paper, including by faking nomination signatures or the details of the candidate.

WHAT’S REALLY GOING ON?

If any party was going to put up fake candidates for election, it would be Reform. However, it’s possible that there’s a less insidious – but still concerning – explanation behind all the controversy.

Speaking to the Guardian, Reform admitted that they had put forward some effective “paper candidates” who did no campaigning, simply in order to increase the party’s national vote share. Disturbingly, some of these ‘phantom’ candidates won several thousand votes.

A Reform source added: “All our candidates are categorically real. Given the rush, a few are just paper candidates and didn’t campaign. Some people began as paper candidates but then did campaign, and one of these – James McMurdock in South Basildon and East Thurrock – ended up winning his seat.”