Farage seems to have abandoned ‘misogynist’ Matt Goodwin

Matt Goodwin is Reform UK’s candidate in the Gorton & Denton by-election. On 20 February, we reported that a GB News employee had accused him of sexual harassment. Now, it’s starting to look like Reform have backed away from their candidate.

Oh, and the sexual harassment story wasn’t the only big revelation about Goodwin last week:

Last week, LBC ran this headline after Matt Goodwin's misogynistic ramblings with Jordan Peterson were disclosed.

Yesterday, Nigel Farage turned up in the middle of the Indian Ocean. 🤦‍♂️

I think it's fair to say that he has cut Goodwin adrift for next week's by-election. pic.twitter.com/vaKYheaRkL

— Don McGowan (@donmcgowan) February 22, 2026

It’s not going Goodwin

When Reform first announced him as their candidate, we reported that Matt Goodwin is an academic and a longtime establishment insider. Despite this, he’s tried to portray himself as an outsider who offers something different to the status quo.

To be fair, there is a notable difference between him and Green candidate Hannah Spencer. As far as we know, Spencer has never attracted allegations like the following:

Reform parachuted-in Gorton and Denton candidate Matthew Goodwin has been accused by a female GB News staffer of sexually harassing her. And Reform boss Nigel Farage is thought to have known about the allegation before he named Goodwin as the party’s candidate in the by-election.

Here’s what LBC reported following Goodwin’s ‘no-child tax’ scandal:

Nigel Farage has distanced himself from comments made by the Reform UK’s Gorton and Denton candidate after he suggested those without children should be taxed in a bid to tackle falling birth rates.

Here what our own Rachel Charlton-Dailey wrote about said scandal:

I can’t imagine the pain that this would cause to those who are struggling with fertility. On top of the emotional and physical toll this puts on you will be financial pressures. For those of us who are infertile, it sends one message. You are not good enough and deserve to be punished for failing as a woman.

I had an elective hysterectomy in 2017 after over a decade of pain. I chose my own health over a condition that was making me want to die, for the sake of one day having a baby. Many would call my decision selfish, but I frankly don’t give a fuck what people who would rather I were in pain think of me.

As much as I loathe a Handmaid’s Tale comparison, this is very apt here. In the novel, working-class women who are infertile are cast out of society. As they have no purpose in a society that values families over all else.

Obviously this is a very emotive issue for people, and you can see why Farage didn’t want to defend the idea of taxing people’s suffering.

Where on Earth is Nigel Farage?

People are talking about the Gorton & Denton race as a pivotal moment which could predict which party wins the 2029 national election. Given that, you’d think Farage would be at the heart and centre of it.

Instead, he’s literally on the other side of the planet:

Chagos is a restricted UK territory. Access is tightly controlled through permits because of the strategic military base on Diego Garcia. This isn’t a tourist island it’s a high-security defence asset.

So did Farage request a permit ?

Or is it another day another stunt https://t.co/ac0sWSJsGf

— Charlie (@CheckCharlieB) February 21, 2026

One person noted the following:

There's something off about @Nigel_Farage's claim, as he watches the boat sail from Maldives to Chagos.
A round trip to Chagos takes between 6-7 days, covering around 600 miles. He would not have been able to do this trip and be back in UK for the #GortonandDenton by-election. pic.twitter.com/bXgeHlnhHV

— The Crane Report  (@TheCraneReport) February 22, 2026

So, did Farage simply fly to the Maldives for a photo opportunity?

Or was he just looking for an excuse to get away from Goodwin?

We’ll let you decide that one.

Oh, and if Farage has abandoned Goodwin, he’s not the only Reform-linked person to do so:

Isabel Oakeshott is dating Richard Tice, a Reform MP.

Here she is roasting Matt Goodwin, a prospective Reform MP.

Is the end coming a little bit quicker than everyone imagined it would? pic.twitter.com/dW7icM8fbP

— Landeur 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 (@Landeur) February 22, 2026

Featured image via The Canary