Nigel Farage's Reform UK has attracted a succession of high-profile defectors from the Conservative Party, elevating the party to the top of some opinion polls and making it a genuine challenger to Labour and the Conservatives. Notable defectors include sitting MPs Robert Jenrick and Danny Kruger and former ministers Nadhim Zahawi, Nadine Dorries and Jake Berry. Analysts warn that if Reform UK sustains its popularity into the likely 2029 general election, it could significantly reshape a political system long dominated by Labour and the Conservatives.
Britain's Political Shake-Up: High-Profile Defections Boost Nigel Farage's Reform UK
Britain's Reform UK party leader Nigel Farage attends a press conference in central London, Britain, January 15, 2026. REUTERS/Toby Melville
Nigel Farage's Reform UK has gained significant momentum in recent months, drawing a string of high-profile defectors from the centre-right Conservative Party. Polls now place Reform UK at or near the top, positioning it as a serious challenger to Prime Minister Keir Starmer's Labour Party and to the Conservatives, who were defeated in the 2024 election after 14 years in power. If Reform UK sustains its lead into the next general election, likely in 2029, it could upend a century-long Labour-Conservative dominance.
Below are profiles of some notable former Conservatives who have joined Reform UK in the past year, and the roles that brought them public attention.
Robert Jenrick
Robert Jenrick, a sitting member of parliament and qualified lawyer, was runner-up to Kemi Badenoch in the 2024 Conservative leadership contest. He joined Reform UK after being dismissed from a party role by Badenoch, amid reports he had been preparing to defect. Previously the Conservatives' justice spokesperson, Jenrick used the profile to focus on immigration and crime and had served as housing minister from 2019 to 2021.
Nadhim Zahawi
Nadhim Zahawi, a former finance minister, joined Reform UK in January 2026 after he was no longer a sitting MP. His brief two-month stint as chancellor occurred during a turbulent period for the Conservatives. Zahawi is widely known for his early leadership of the UK's COVID-19 vaccine rollout and is a co-founder of the polling company YouGov. Born in Iraq, he arrived in Britain as a child refugee.
Danny Kruger
Danny Kruger became the first sitting Conservative MP to defect when he joined Reform UK in September 2025. A former aide to prime ministers Boris Johnson and David Cameron, Kruger had been the Conservatives' welfare spokesperson before leaving the party.
'This is my tragic conclusion: the Conservative Party is over, over as a national party, over as the principal opposition,' he said at the time of his defection.
Nadine Dorries
Nadine Dorries, a best-selling author who served as culture minister between 2021 and 2022 and resigned from Parliament in 2023, announced her defection to Reform UK in September 2025. She cited a spreading 'sense of dread' across communities and expressed confidence in Nigel Farage's leadership.
'I believe that the only politician who has the answers, the knowledge and the will to deliver is Nigel Farage,' she wrote when announcing her switch.
Jake Berry
Jake Berry, who lost his parliamentary seat to Labour in the 2024 election, defected to Reform UK in July 2025. Berry served briefly as chair of the Conservative Party in 2022 and previously held junior ministerial posts under Theresa May and Boris Johnson. On joining Reform, he said change requires challenging the established order when it is not working.
Political implications: Analysts say these defections reflect deepening strains within the Conservative movement and could realign Britain's political landscape if Reform UK's support holds. The next general election, expected in 2029, will be a crucial test of whether these shifts translate into lasting political change.
(Reporting by Sarah Young. Editing by Mark Potter)
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