Restore Britain will appear on a Scottish ballot for the first time on Thursday 29 October 2026, when Argyll and Bute Council holds a by-election in its Mid Argyll ward (Ward 3). The party's candidate is George Love.
Announcing the contest on X on 30 September, Rupert Lowe wrote: "I'm pleased to say Restore Britain will be standing in our first election in Scotland, for the 'Mid Argyll' ward of Argyll and Bute council. We are giving patriotic Scots a genuine alternative." Democracy Club's candidate records list no earlier Restore Britain candidacy anywhere in Scotland.
Why the by-election is being held
The seat fell vacant on the death in August 2026 of Councillor Dougie Philand, the serving Provost of Argyll and Bute. He sat as an Independent and had represented Mid Argyll since May 2007. On 23 September the council elected Jan Brown, an SNP councillor for the same ward, as its new Provost.
Mid Argyll elects three councillors, and this by-election fills one seat. The ward has an electorate of just under 6,000 and takes in Lochgilphead, Ardrishaig, Inveraray, Furnace, Kilmartin, Tayvallich and the surrounding districts. Polls are open from 7am to 10pm.
The candidates
The Returning Officer's notice of poll, dated 28 September, lists seven candidates, with their ballot descriptions:
- Andy Buntin: Scottish National Party (SNP)
- George Love: Restore Britain
- Douglas MacDonald: Scottish Liberal Democrats
- Kaine McConnell: Reform UK
- David Charles Moncrieff: Independent
- Fiona Nelson: Independence for Scotland Party
- Colvin Osborn: Scottish Conservative and Unionist
As in every Scottish council election, voting is by the Single Transferable Vote: voters number as many or as few candidates as they wish, in order of preference. With one seat to fill, a candidate who reaches the quota of just over half the valid votes is elected. If no one does, the lowest-placed candidates are excluded one at a time and their votes passed to the next preference marked, until someone reaches the quota or only one candidate is left. Because some ballots carry no further preference, the winner can finish with less than half of the valid votes.
How the ward voted in 2022
At the last full council election, on 5 May 2022, Mid Argyll chose three councillors from nine candidates. Turnout was 52.0%. First-preference votes:
- Dougie Philand (Independent): 1,148 (35.9%), elected
- Jan Brown (SNP): 993 (31.1%), elected
- Garret Corner (Scottish Conservative and Unionist): 371 (11.6%), elected
- Lesley Burt (Labour): 157 (4.9%)
- Donnie MacMillan (Independent): 149 (4.7%)
- Andy Cameron (Independent): 140 (4.4%)
- David Barton (Liberal Democrat): 107 (3.3%)
- Ross Alistair Weir (Independence for Scotland Party): 78 (2.4%)
- Abisola Adepetun (Independent): 54 (1.7%)
The council's directory now lists Garret Corner as an Independent Unionist. Restore Britain did not exist in 2022.
Restore Britain in Scotland so far
Restore Britain is on the Electoral Commission's Great Britain register, which allows it to stand candidates under its own name in England, Scotland and Wales. No councillor has been elected in Scotland under its name. In March 2026 South Kintyre councillor Tommy Macpherson, elected as a Conservative in 2022, announced that he was joining the party; the council's directory lists him as an Independent.
The membership claims
The next morning, 1 October, Lowe made claims about the party's Scottish membership on X: "Scottish Labour have 11,000 members. After our surge this week, Restore Britain now has 11,117. Restore Britain has more members than Labour in Scotland, and we're rapidly catching Reform on 12,500." Newspapers reporting his statement described the 11,117 as "registered supporters".
The 11,117 figure is the party's own claim. Parties do not have to publish their membership, Restore Britain has published no official Scottish breakdown, and the two newspapers that reported the figure, the Scottish Daily Express and The National, said it could not be independently verified. The figures for the other parties are of different kinds and dates:
- Scottish Labour: about 11,000, a figure Michael Marra gave in August 2026 during the leadership contest he went on to win, as reported by The National.
- Reform UK: "well over 12,000" members in Scotland, according to Reform UK Scotland in August 2026.
- Scottish Greens: "over 10,000", according to the party in March 2026.
- Scottish Conservatives: 6,941 members were eligible to vote in the party's September 2024 leadership ballot.
- SNP: about 51,000 at the end of 2025, according to its annual report to the Electoral Commission, as reported by Holyrood.
Update checked 5 October: Lowe has subsequently claimed that Restore Britain has overtaken Reform UK in Scottish membership and is now second only to the SNP. The National's report, syndicated by inkl (opens in a new tab), again says it could not independently verify the claim. The report provides no new exact Restore Britain membership total. We therefore treat the claimed ranking as unverified, rather than replacing the dated 11,117 claim with an inferred figure.
Membership is not the same as votes. The Mid Argyll by-election will be the first measure of Restore Britain's vote in Scotland. The party also has further English council contests scheduled in October; see our results and candidates round-up.
For the party's earlier contests in England, see Makerfield and the Greater Manchester by-elections and the timeline.
Sources
- Argyll and Bute Council: notice of poll, Mid Argyll by-election, 28 September 2026 (PDF) (opens in a new tab)
- Argyll and Bute Council: Mid Argyll (Ward 3) by-election (opens in a new tab)
- Argyll and Bute Council: By-election, Ward 3 Mid Argyll, 9 September 2026 (opens in a new tab)
- Argyll and Bute Council: Mid Argyll declaration of results, 6 May 2022 (PDF) (opens in a new tab)
- Argyll and Bute Council: councillors directory, Garret Corner (opens in a new tab)
- Helensburgh Advertiser: Seven candidates confirmed for Mid Argyll by-election, 30 September 2026 (opens in a new tab)
- Rupert Lowe on X, 30 September 2026 (opens in a new tab)
- Rupert Lowe on X, 1 October 2026 (opens in a new tab)
- Scottish Daily Express: Lowe's membership claim, 1 October 2026 (opens in a new tab)
- The National: Lowe's membership claim, 1 October 2026 (opens in a new tab)
- Deadline News: Lowe announces first Scottish election, 30 September 2026 (opens in a new tab)
- The National: Scottish Labour membership, 12 August 2026 (opens in a new tab)
- The Scotsman: Michael Marra named new leader of Scottish Labour, 19 September 2026 (opens in a new tab)
- Reform UK Scotland, 13 August 2026 (opens in a new tab)
- Scottish Greens, 21 March 2026 (opens in a new tab)
- Holyrood: Russell Findlay elected Scottish Conservative leader, 27 September 2024 (opens in a new tab)
- Holyrood: SNP membership falls, 6 August 2026 (opens in a new tab)
- Democracy Club: Restore Britain candidates (CSV) (opens in a new tab)
- West Coast Today: Kintyre councillor joins Restore Britain, 27 March 2026 (opens in a new tab)
- Argyll and Bute Council: councillors directory, Tommy Macpherson (opens in a new tab)
- Argyll and Bute Council: South Kintyre declaration of results, 6 May 2022 (PDF) (opens in a new tab)
- legislation.gov.uk: Scottish Local Government Elections Order 2011, Schedule 1 (counting rules) (opens in a new tab)
- Electoral Commission: Restore Britain, PP18382 (opens in a new tab)
- The National: Lowe's subsequent Scottish membership ranking claim, syndicated by inkl, checked 5 October 2026 (opens in a new tab)