Did parties field fake candidates in UK general election?

This article was originally published in English

A photo of Mark Matlock, Reform UK’s candidate for the Clapham and Brixton Hill constituency in south London, has sparked speculation that the far-right party has run fake candidates in the election.

The photo, which appears to have been digitally altered, has sparked controversy rumors that Mr Matlock did not exist, leading to wider claims that Reform UK had fielded non-existent candidates in other constituencies too.

These rumours were fuelled by further claims that Mr Matlock had failed to attend any meetings and that his rival candidates had never met him.

He also failed to show up for the counting of votes when the election results were announced in the early hours of July 5.

Despite all these claims, there is no real evidence that the reformists ran fake or non-existent candidates.

Several national news outlets, such as The Guardianthe BBC and Sky News, have reportedly confirmed Mr Matlock’s identity.

The latter also appeared on GB News a few days after the election to discuss these allegations.

He said the reason he did not attend the counting was because he was suffering from pneumonia, repeating what he had said on X before the results are announced.

As for his supposedly AI-generated photo, Matlock told the Guardian it had been edited to change his tie and suit because he was unable to get to a photographer in time.

Ultimately, Mr Matlock came fifth in his constituency, with less than 2,000 votes, while Bell Ribeiro-Addy won for the ruling Labour Party, with more than 24,000 votes.

Paper candidates

Although none of Reform’s candidates appear to be fakes, the BBC reports that the party has struggled to find candidates and in some cases has had to recruit friends and family of staff members to run.

Some of them ended up doing very little campaigning, if any at all.

These “paper candidates”, who appear on the ballot paper but do not actually show their faces, are a common feature of British elections.

In fact, political parties receive more than £22,000 (€26,000) for each seat won and an additional £45 for every 200 votes won.

As well as providing a financial incentive to run candidates in every constituency, Reform UK claims that this strengthens democracy because as many people in the country as possible have the chance to vote for them.

This all comes after an AI candidate actually ran in the last UK general election: AI Steve was a candidate in the Brighton Pavilion constituencybut only received 179 votes.

Its creator, Steve Endacott, had said he wanted his avatar to be present in the House of Commons to combat the British public’s disillusionment with politics.

“I will try to use technology to get closer to the opinions of my voters,” he said at the time of the election.

The UK is no stranger to the emergence of ‘exotic’ candidates in elections. It is not uncommon to see characters such as Elmo, Count Binface and Barmy Brunch contesting seats alongside more mainstream politicians.

Sadly, the UK will have to wait a little longer before an MP with artificial intelligence enters the Houses of Parliament.

Additional sources • adaptation: Serge Duchêne