RAYMOND Saint was dropped as a candidate for Reform UK last week after a leaked document revealed that he was recorded as a British National Party (BNP) member in 2009.
However, questions have been raised about what happens to candidates like Mr Saint, who have been removed by their party after the deadline for election nomination has passed.
The deadline for nominating candidates for the general election on Thursday, July 4, passed on Friday, June 7. After this date, ballot papers are produced and printed.
READ MORE: Reform UK drops Basingstoke candidate over alleged BNP membership
This means that Raymond Saint's name will still appear on the ballot paper next to Reform UK. If Mr Saint were to win the Basingstoke seat, he could therefore enter Parliament as an independent MP.
Alternatively, the dropped candidate could join a political party or resign their seat. If an MP changes party, a by-election is not automatically triggered. By-elections typically take place when an MP resigns, dies, or is considered bankrupt.
Guidance from the Association of Electoral Administrators states that 'no political information can be made available in polling stations', meaning that if voters ask about Mr Saint on the day of the elections, polling station staff may only make a factual statement along the lines of: “Candidate X was validly nominated as the authorised candidate for Y party, so is included as that on the ballot paper.”
Mr Saint, who was the only candidate missing in a recent husting organised by Basingstoke Hindu Society, was dropped by the Nigel Farage-led party on Thursday, June 27 after a leaked document published in 2009 listed Mr Saint as a member of the BNP, according to The Guardian newspaper.
The list also shows his home address, the same as in the nomination papers filed for the Basingstoke election. In the document, he is described as a retired engineer with MSc and BA in technology.
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The Gazette previously tried to contact Mr Saint, who said he did not wish to comment on his affiliation with the BNP.
Reform UK leader, Nigel Farage, appeared on BBC's Question Time on the evening of Friday, June 28, after another three candidates were dropped from the party after it was reported they had made racist or offensive comments.
Mr Farage told presenter Fiona Bruce: "I want nothing to do with them."
The general election will take place on July 4 and according to data from YouGov, it could see an historic Labour win for Basingstoke, which has been held by the Conservatives for 100 years.
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