Nigel Farage's Rebellion British Party attracts more than 12 donors from the once dominant Conservative Party in Britain, with new data revealing threats from the right-wing populist party that Tories model Trump's Magazine movement.
In total, the reform raised £4.75 million ($6.1 million) last year. This has risen sharply from under $200,000 raised by the party in 2023.
The New York Times analyzed all donations Refome UK reported to the UK Campaign Finance Watchdog in 2024. This gave the first major snapshot of who is funding the party, including last quarter figures released on Thursday.
The biggest single donation of the last quarter came from former conservative donor, former Lehman Brothers banker and Monaco-based investor Rogernagioff. Other major contributions in 2024 included £1 million from a company owned by Richard Tice, the assistant leader of reform, and £500,000 from Fiona Cottrell.
The conservative departure began after Trump's ideological ally Farage took over as reform leader last year just before the UK's July general election. Farage, a longtime political disruptor and former commodity trader who campaigned for Brexit, promised to remake British conservatism, pushing the move with a nationalist platform where he frames the frame as rebuttal and anti-immigrants.
Reforms surged in national votes, overtaking the Conservatives and seizing their first city seat. The Governance Labour Party will not need to hold a general election until 2029, but the successful fundraising for reforms will underscore Farage's momentum and help his party specialize as he will challenge two major political parties in the local elections in May.
Farage describes his support for reform as a “rebellion against establishment,” but 34% of the party's new funders are former donors to the Conservative Party, a centuries-old right-wing party that held power in Britain for 14 years before last general election.
Sam Power, a political finance expert at the University of Bristol, said the latest data is a harsh warning to the Conservative Party, led by Kemi Badenok.
“I think the move of donors from the Conservative Party will already raise an alarm bell at the Conservative Party headquarters,” Power said.
“What money talks and you can see is if money is moving from one party to another, that's a big indication that the sand is changing,” he said. “Not only focusing on elections and the public, but also reforms, their donors are becoming more and more curious.”
Other major donors in 2024 included billionaires and billionaires, individuals based in overseas jurisdictions, or those investing in offshore investments, climate change skeptics, or fossil fuels or other climate-damaged industries.
The Conservatives were approached for comments.
Farage's first reforms as the Brexit party in 2019 won 14.3% of the vote in last year's general election. However, in recent weeks, several polls have reached around 25%, overtaking conservatives and the workforce.
This is a developing story. Please check for updates.
