Reform’s Andrea Jenkyns cleared to run for Lincolnshire mayor simply days earlier than election | EUROtoday

Reform UK have narrowly averted an area election disaster after one of many social gathering’s most excessive profile candidates, Dame Andrea Jenkyns, was cleared to run as a mayoral candidate simply days earlier than the vote.

A call by the chief government of North Kesteven Council on whether or not Dame Andrea meets residency standards to run for Greater Lincolnshire mayor had been deferred till after the weekend.

But in a last-minute reprieve issued late on Friday, the council accepted that her tackle was legitimate and mentioned the frontrunner might stand.

Reacting to the information, Dame Andrea informed The Independent: “From the start this has been a political hit job aimed at smearing my candidacy. I am proud to live in Lincolnshire and it would be the honour of my life to be mayor of the place I grew up in and live in.”

A senior Tory supply confirmed to The Independent that the social gathering would put in a authorized problem to petition a re-election and disqualify her.

The mayoralty is being hotly contested between Labour, the Tories and Reform. According to a latest YouGov ballot, Dame Andrea is forward on 40 per cent with the Tory candidate Rob Waltham on 25 per cent and Labour’s Jason Stockwood on 15 per cent.

Postal votes for the election on Thursday 1 May have already been returned and the election might have been thrown into chaos if Dame Andrea had been banned from standing.

The scenario additionally threatened to do severe injury to Nigel Farage and Reform as they attempt to present that they’re a reputable social gathering of presidency within the 2029 common election.

The listening to on Friday in north Lincolnshire was introduced on account of an impartial candidate for mayor, Marianne Overton, who’s a councillor on North Kesteven District Council.

It was based mostly on the truth that Dame Andrea resides between Lincolnshire and Leeds, the place she was a Tory MP, for household causes.

It is known that she tried to show that the house she rents in Lincolnshire is her major tackle with financial institution statements, proof from her landlord and lease statements.

However, a query mark had remained over whether or not her identify is on the electoral roll in Lincolnshire.

The Electoral Commission web site states that mayoral candidates should meet certainly one of 4 residential {qualifications}, which embrace residing or working within the native authority space the place they want to stand, or being registered there as an elector.

Prior to the listening to, a spokesperson for Reform mentioned the accusations made in opposition to Dame Andrea have been “vexatious and politically motivated”, claiming that they have been an try to smear her simply days earlier than the citizens solid their votes.

The spokesperson mentioned: “We understand a vexatious and politically motivated complaint has been made by the relative of a candidate in the same election that Andrea Jenkyns is contesting, in an attempt to deprive the people of Lincolnshire of the chance to vote for Reform UK. We are confident that this complaint will be dismissed.”

The Independent has approached North Kesteven District Council for remark.