British satirical political candidate
Fictional character
Count Binface First appearance 12 December 2018 Portrayed by Jonathan David Harvey (2018–present) In-universe information Species Recyclon Gender Male Occupation Leader of the Recyclons Origin Sigma IX
Count Binface is a satirical perennial candidate created by the British comedian Jonathan David Harvey[1] in 2018.[2] He was a candidate for Uxbridge and South Ruislip in the 2019 United Kingdom general election against the then prime minister, Boris Johnson. He also stood in the London Mayoral elections in 2021 and 2024.[3]
In earlier elections, Harvey stood as Lord Buckethead, but was forced to change the character due to a copyright dispute with the American filmmaker Todd Durham, who created Lord Buckethead for his 1984 science fiction film Hyperspace.[4][5] Since then Harvey has used the forced name change to his advantage by using the platform of Binface to promote electoral participation, with the slogan, "Make your vote COUNT".
In 2019, another individual contested the Uxbridge and South Ruislip seat as Buckethead, representing the Official Monster Raving Loony Party, to which Binface said he "look[s] forward to both the hustings and to challenging [him] to take part in a receptacle-to-receptacle debate".[6]
When Johnson resigned as an MP in 2023, Binface again stood as a candidate in the Uxbridge and South Ruislip by-election, finishing eighth of 17. Originally standing as an independent, since 2023 his affiliation has been given as Count Binface Party on ballot papers.[7] Count Binface plans to contest the seat of current UK prime minister, Rishi Sunak, in Richmond and Northallerton, in the 2024 general election on 4 July.[8]
Character [ edit ]
Count Binface is an "independent space warrior"[9] in a black and grey uniform, with a long silver cape and a helmet shaped somewhat like a dustbin with a glowing strip where his eyes would be. He describes himself as the leader of the Recyclons from the planet Sigma IX,[10] and claims to be over 5,900 years old.[11]
2019 general election policies [ edit ]
Binface announced a series of satirical policies for the 2019 general election, including:
2021 London mayoral election [ edit ]
Binface announced his intention to stand for the London Mayoral Election, which was originally scheduled for 2020, but was delayed until 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. He announced a suite of 21 policies which "marries fiscal responsibility, social awareness, and not being an anti-vaccine nutjob", including:
Binface started a fundraiser to raise £10,000, the amount necessary to allow him to stand for Mayor of London. The excess money was donated to charity Shelter to help combat homelessness.[17] He finished ninth with 24,775 votes in the mayoral election.[21]
2024 London mayoral election [ edit ]
In March 2024, Binface started another fundraiser to allow him to stand in the next London mayoral election, which was held on 2 May 2024. Any funds raised in excess of the necessary £10,000 would again be donated to charity.[22] After gaining the required amount, he announced his entry into the race[3] and released his manifesto,[23] which re-used many policies from previous years but added a few new ones.
The Binface manifesto called for the abolition of VAR[24] (presumably in football matches) and promised to force Thames Water managers to "take a dip in the Thames... see how they like it", in reference to the recent sewage discharge controversy; also to "build at least one affordable house", referring to the housing crisis in London.[25]
He finished in 11th place with 24,260 votes, notably, ahead of Britain First, despite the election's change to a First Past the Post voting system. [26] Incumbent mayor and election winner Sadiq Khan in a victory speech remarked about celebrating "becoming the first person in British political history to win successive victories over Count Binface".[27] He added that Binface finishing ahead of the far-right Britain First candidate was "another reason to love London".[28]
2024 general election [ edit ]
On 7 June 2024, Binface announced his intention to stand as a candidate in the 2024 United Kingdom general election, contesting the Richmond and Northallerton constituency against the prime minister, Rishi Sunak. Binface said that he was "taking on the biggest fish of the lot" in the election on 7 June and commented; "You shirked D-Day Rishi, you can't miss the B-Day", a reference to the controversy caused by Sunak's early departure from the ceremonies commemorating the 80th anniversary of the Normandy landings.[29]
Electoral history [ edit ]
Mayor of London election 6 May 2021 Party Candidate 1st round 2nd round 1st round votes Transfer votes, 2nd round Total Of round Transfers Total Of round Labour hold
2023 Uxbridge and South Ruislip by-election[31][32] Party Candidate Votes % Majority 495 1.6 −13.4 Turnout 31,000 46.23 Registered electors Conservative hold Swing −6.7
Notes [ edit ]
Books [ edit ]
See also [ edit ]