Image: Wikimedia Commons. Nigel Farage in 2024.- Farage’s quote is verified in reporting from The Independent citing his remarks to the Telegraph.
- Musk posted support for Restore Britain on X, including reposting Rupert Lowe with the comment “Restore Britain.”
- A Survation poll put Labour’s Andy Burnham on 43%, Reform’s Robert Kenyon on 40%, and Restore Britain’s Rebecca Shepherd on 7%.
Nigel Farage has accused Elon Musk of splitting the right-wing vote in the Makerfield by-election by backing Rupert Lowe’s Restore Britain party.
The key quote is real. Farage told the Telegraph: “Elon Musk has decided he will try to split the right of British politics as best he can. This is supporting a party that’s one man with a social media account. Quite what he’s trying to achieve, I have no idea.”
What happened
Musk has been amplifying Restore Britain on X. According to The Independent, he reposted a message from Rupert Lowe with the comment “Restore Britain” and also posted the phrase in response to an interview by Reform’s Treasury spokesman Robert Jenrick.
That matters because Makerfield is shaping up as a tight Labour-Reform fight. Labour has selected Andy Burnham, the Greater Manchester mayor, as its candidate. Reform is running Robert Kenyon, who came second in the seat at the 2024 general election.
Restore Britain, the party associated with former Reform figure Rupert Lowe, is also standing a candidate: Rebecca Shepherd. That creates exactly the split Farage is warning about.
The polling behind the panic
The first constituency poll reported in the race put Labour on 43% and Reform on 40%, with Restore Britain on 7%. Channel 4 News listed the declared candidates and reported that Burnham was ahead with Reform close behind. The Independent noted that the Survation study was an early look, with a small likely-voter sample, but still politically explosive.
In a seat where Labour’s lead is reported at three points, a right-wing challenger polling at seven points becomes more than a symbolic problem. It can plausibly decide the result.
Image: Wikimedia Commons. Elon Musk, whose X posts backing Restore Britain triggered Farage’s criticism.Why Makerfield matters
The by-election is not just a local contest. The Guardian reported that Burnham’s return to Westminster could change the course of British politics, with a potential leadership challenge against Keir Starmer widely assumed if he wins.
For Reform, the seat is a test of whether it can turn second-place pressure into a breakthrough against Labour. For Restore Britain, it is a chance to show there is space to Reform’s right or outside Farage’s control. For Musk, whether intentional or not, the intervention turns an already tense by-election into a proxy fight inside the British right.
Restore Britain’s response
Rupert Lowe pushed back at Farage’s “one man with a social media account” attack, saying the party is not about him but about its members and supporters. That is the broader fight: Farage wants anti-Labour voters to consolidate behind Reform; Lowe wants to prove Reform does not own the insurgent right.
The risk for both is obvious. If Burnham wins narrowly while Restore Britain pulls enough votes to cover the margin, the by-election will become the cleanest example yet of right-wing fragmentation helping Labour.
NoDechev rating: verified quote, real vote-split risk. Farage’s exact remark is accurately reported, Musk did post support for Restore Britain, and early polling gives the split argument political force. The result is still unknown.
Ready social post
Farage accused Elon Musk of splitting the right in Makerfield by backing Restore Britain: “one man with a social media account.” The quote checks out. Early polling puts Labour 43, Reform 40, Restore Britain 7 — enough to make the vote-split argument matter.
Read next: France Bans Zyn-Style Nicotine Pouches