𝓤𝓷𝓲𝓽𝓮𝓭 𝓝𝓮𝔀𝓼

Robert Jenrick is facing calls to quit Parliament and allow a by-election in the Midlands seat he has represented for 12 years. Local voters told the Express they want the chance to decide for themselves whether Mr Jenrick should continue to represent them, following his defection to Reform. Retired NHS nurse Janice Burton, 79, said: “We don’t know where we stand now. I feel let down. I voted for him as a Conservative and there was no pre-warning that he would do this.”

Mr Jenrick has been MP the Nottinghamshire seat of Newark, containing the picturesque market towns of Southwell and Newark-on-Trent, since a 2014 by-election. But his election wins were under the Conservative banner, leaving local voters bemused to discover they are now represented by a Reform MP. Opinion is divided, but many constituents want Mr Jenrick to resign his seat so a fresh vote can be held. It would allow the politician to try his luck standing for Reform, while Conservatives could offer a new candidate of their own and let the public decide.

Agricultural consultant Neil Morton, 83, said: “I personally could not care less about him as he has put himself first. I have traditionally voted Conservative, but I didn’t vote in the last election. However I think in principle he should face a by-election so people get the opportunity to choose whether they want a Reform candidate or not.”

University of Nottingham student Abigail, 20, also urged him to face the electorate. She said: “He can get lost as far as I’m concerned. There definitely should be a by-election so people can question him about his actions. I’ve never really seen him around town so we deserve somebody far better.”

Not everyone agrees. Engineer Richard Barnes, 61, said he was a fan of Jenrick and didn’t believe a by-election was necessary. He said: “I voted for him as a Conservative and I still back him. I don’t think there should be a by-election but I do think there are questions for him to answer about what he has done”.

Council worker Emma, 50, said she has been “waiting for the day” Jenrick quit the Tories. She said: “I am so glad he has finally joined Reform, I think it’s a really good thing and I am sure more MPs will now follow. Along with other Reform supporters I have been waiting for this moment.”

But Emma’s daughter Annabel is among those demanding a new poll. The 18-year-old said: “People didn’t vote for Reform so I think he should be forced to step-down. I disagree with all his policies so 100% I think there should be a by-election. It’s just not democratic to change party after being elected.”

It’s a gamble the former Communities Secretary is unlikely to take, but it might pay off handsomely if he did.

Mr Jenrick held the seat as a Tory in 2024 with 20,968 votes, with Labour second on 17,396. Reform were distant third with 8,280 votes.

But a recent mammoth poll by More in Common found the result could be different today. It predicted Reform could get 34% of the vote in Newark, with Conservatives narrowly behind on 31%. The survey findings were published earlier this month, before the defection.

Local Tory activists, who delivered leaflets and knocked on doors to help Mr Jenrick get elected in the past, are furious.

Sam Smith, Conservative Opposition leader of Nottingham County Council, said: “I think betrayal is the right word, we worked our absolute socks off in Newark in the general election”.

But they are stuck with their Reform MP. Speaking to the BBC’s Laura Kuenssberg yesterday, Mr Jenrick confirmed there will be no by-election and vowed to continue working for his constituents “as I always have”.

It followed his statement on Thursday, when he said: “I don’t intend to call a by-election.”

But Mr Jenrick also claimed that his re-election in 2024 may in fact have been down to Reform voters, who backed him despite being the Tory candidate because of his “independent” approach. He said “There are a lot of Reform voters in Newark who decided to bite their tongue and not vote Reform and to vote for me at the last general election, precisely because of that, and my constituents know that I’ll continue to do that, to be the strongest possible voice for them and for the issues that they care about, and above all, to hold this failing Labour Government to account.”