A Reform UK candidate standing in a key London battleground has claimed that racist posts on his social media account were the work of Nigerian scammers. Graham Holland, 81, a former Conservative councillor, was initially blocked from standing due to 'inappropriate social media' but was later permitted to run after presenting what the party described as 'new evidence'.
Holland, who is contesting the Blackfen and Lamorbey ward in Bexley, south-east London, was accused of reposting messages on X claiming that Muslims were 'training their kids how to kill your kids' and 'aiming to take over a country'. The retired Foreign Office worker told the Mirror: 'I was scammed… And what happened was it was from Nigeria.'
He said a computer expert friend, Gareth, traced the hack to Nigeria and confirmed that he had not sent the posts. Holland claimed the scammers took control of his account and sent the messages. He said he provided a WhatsApp message from Gareth as evidence to the local party chair, though he was unsure if it was passed to head office.
Holland, a born-again Christian, insisted he would not post such inflammatory content and said he has many Muslim friends. He discussed the issue with Gareth at the Chunky Teapot café, where the friend explained how the hack occurred. A message from Gareth, shown to the Mirror, stated that the offending posts no longer existed, suggesting hackers had created a new account in Holland's name.
Reform leader Nigel Farage has predicted the party has a 'real chance' of winning the Tory-held Bexley seat. Despite the initial vetting rejection in January, Holland was selected in March to contest the ward for Reform UK.
