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INVESTIGATION BY THE FERRET: Why do parties run ‘paper candidates’ in elections?

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Why do parties run ‘paper candidates’ in elections?
Nigel Farage speaking

Author: Ferret Journalists
The Reform Party has been criticised over allegedly running ‘paper candidates’ in constituencies across the UK..
In the 2024 general election, five candidates were elected as MPs for Reform, and it picked up more than four million votes across the country. This was the third largest vote share of any party.
Numerous candidates standing for Reform appeared to have no profile beyond their name and constituency, leading to accusations the party may have listed fake or even AI-generated candidates.

What are paper candidates?

A paper candidate is a person who is put on the ballot paper primarily to allow a party to stand in a constituency. They are not expected to do any campaigning and often have little to no connection to or profile within the constituency.

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