The European election: constituencies to watch
Ann Widdecombe, Nigel Farage, Gavin Esler and Tommy Robinson are among the high-profile candidates vying to become an MEP.
Counting in the elections to the European Parliament will start on Sunday May 26. Here are some of the key contests to look out for as the results come in.
South West England.
One of the most high-profile battlegrounds pitches the Brexit Party’s star recruit – former Tory minister and Strictly contestant Ann Widdecombe – against Boris Johnson’s sister Rachel, who is standing for the new pro-Remain Change UK party.
Also competing for the region’s six seats are the strongly pro-Remain Labour peer and former cabinet minister Lord Adonis, the YouTube controversialist Carl Benjamin – aka Sargon of Akkad – who is standing for Ukip, and the Greens’ Molly Scott Cato.
London.
Former BBC Newsnight presenter Gavin Esler is hoping to win one of the eight seats up for grabs in the capital for Change UK.
Also fighting for places are Syed Kamall, the leader of the Conservative group in the European Parliament, the prominent Labour MEPs Claude Moraes and Seb Dance, Liberal Democrat Catherine Bearder, and Ukip leader Gerard Batten.
North West England.
Former English Defence League leader and some time adviser to Mr Batten, Tommy Robinson (real name Stephen Yaxley-Lennon), is running as an independent.
Claire Fox, a former revolutionary communist, is on the ballot paper for the Brexit Party in the region which returns eight MEPs.
Others to watch out for are Annunziata Rees-Mogg – sister of the arch Tory Brexiteer Jacob Rees-Mogg – who is running for the Brexit Party in the East Midlands.
Her party leader Nigel Farage is standing in South East England which he has represented in the European Parliament since 1999.
