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Donald Trump has congratulated his right-wing ally Nigel Farage after he won his first seat in UK’s parliament following seven failed attempts.
The British public went to the polls in the UK general election on Thursday, handing Sir Keir Starmer’s Labour Party a landslide victory and ousting Rishi Sunak’s unpopular Conservatives.
Farage’s right-wing Reform UK party cinched four seats as its hardline immigration policies appeared to steal votes away from Conservatives.
Trump took to his Truth Social platform to congratulate his old friend.
Congratulations to Nigel Farage on his big WIN of a Parliament Seat Amid Reform UK Election Success,” he wrote.
“Nigel is a man who truly loves his Country! DJT.”
In his brief congratulations, Trump made no mention of the Labour party sweep and failed to congratulate Starmer – the man who he will have to form a close working relationship with should he win his own election against Joe Biden in November.
Farage, who previously led UKIP and the Brexit Party, unexpectedly announced last month that he would stand in the July 4 election for the Reform Party and serve as its leader.
His run marked a major u-turn after he insisted he would not be standing in the UK general election so that he could instead focus on helping Trump win his own presidential election.
On Thursday, Farage sailed to victory in his race, overturning a 25,000 Conservative majority to become the MP for Clacton in Essex by more than 8,000 votes, finally winning a seat after failing in all seven previous attempts.
The Brexiteer said his win, one of four for the Reform party, was “the first step of something that is going to stun all of you” and wasted no time in laying into Sunak’s moribund Tories, declaring: “There is a massive gap on the centre-right of British politics and my job is to fill it.”
Farage and Trump have been close allies for almost a decade.
It’s a bond that was first forged when Trump invited Farage to speak at his MAGA rallies during his 2016 presidential campaign, in the wake of the UK’s shock decision to leave the European Union – a cause Farage had spearheaded.
After Trump entered the White House, Farage then interviewed him on LBC radio in October 2019, an exchange the American used to rebuke then-Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn and offer his opinion on how then-UK prime minister Boris Johnson could make a success of Brexit.
More recently, Trump spoke to Farage again on his GB News show in March and falsely claimed that the US funds “90 to 100 per cent” of Nato as part of a diatribe against the military alliance’s member states for failing to meet their financial commitments to its upkeep.
The former president also waded into a row over an edited photo of Kate Middleton and her children, dismissing the furore surrounding the picture by saying: “That shouldn’t be a big deal… It’s a very minor doctoring.”
Two weeks later, Trump sent a video message that was played at Farage’s 60th birthday party, in which he told his friend: “You’re a historic figure as a prophetic leader and I know that the people of the UK are grateful for your patriotism and service.
“In fact, I’m very much looking forward to watching what your next move is gonna be. It’s gonna be an interesting one.
“You’re not done yet and hopefully the best is yet to come so, Nigel, enjoy this day.”
Farage in turn reflected on their relationship during an ITV interview in June ahead of Thursday’s election, claiming that Trump had “learned a lot” from his example when he made his first bid for the White House.
“He’s learned quite a lot from me, I think it goes both ways… He was watching my speeches in the European Parliament for many years… before he decided to run,” he said.
“I know that to be true.”
