Reform UK leader Nigel Farage demanded a general election be called "at the soonest possible date" hours after Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced his resignation on Monday, saying voters "won't accept being taken for fools".
In a post on his Substack, Farage said, "Starmer isn't the first Prime Minister I've deposed, and he won't be the last. David Cameron. Theresa May. Rishi Sunak. And next up – Andy Burnham. The reason each leader has failed is the same."
He went on to say that "what the political class fails to understand is that the electorate won't accept being taken for fools. They cannot continue to take the votes of the people who supported them for granted, only to betray them upon having gained power. Politics is about trust."
Farage added, "That is why I am calling for a general election at the soonest possible date. You know as well as I do that the country cannot afford to waste another week drifting from crisis to crisis. That's why millions of you turned out in the local elections to vote for Reform councillors, and it's why we have led in more than 300 opinion polls for well over a year."
Starmer announced his resignation earlier on Monday after telling King Charles of his decision over the phone, with the King at his Highgrove estate at the time.
Starmer said he had asked Labour's National Executive Committee to set out a leadership timetable, with nominations opening on July 9 and the contest to be completed by the summer recess, ensuring a new leader is in place before Parliament returns in September.
ALSO READ: Keir Starmer Steps Down As UK PM, Says New Leader Will Be In Place By September
He said he would remain prime minister until then and pledged to ensure an "orderly handover of power".
Farage's call for an immediate national vote comes as Reform UK has emerged as the dominant force in opinion polling over the past year, following the party's strong showing in May's local elections, where it gained more than 1,450 council seats while Labour lost over 1,100.
Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham, who Farage referenced as the next likely Labour leader, is widely seen as the frontrunner to succeed Starmer after winning the Makerfield by-election last week, a result that had intensified pressure on Starmer to step aside.
Under UK law, a general election is not required simply because a prime minister resigns mid-term, as the governing party can choose a new leader who then serves as prime minister without an immediate national vote, leaving Farage's demand reliant on political pressure rather than constitutional necessity.
ALSO READ: Who Will Be UK's Next PM? Meet The Top 5 Contenders To Replace Keir Starmer
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