Andy Osborn
Reform UK Cambridgeshire councillor convicted under Section 106 RPA 1983, vacating his seat.
Last refreshed: 26 April 2026 · Appears in 1 active topic
Does the Osborn conviction mark the start of legal accountability for Reform's 2025 candidate cohort?
Timeline for Andy Osborn
Convicted under Section 106 RPA and fined £1,800 for a false Facebook post about a Conservative rival; seat vacated
UK Local Elections 2026: RPA Bill stranded, FCA review without probeConvicted at Westminster Magistrates' Court for false Facebook post about rival candidate
UK Local Elections 2026: Section 106 conviction vacates Reform seat- What is the Andy Osborn Section 106 case?
- Andy Osborn, a Reform UK Cambridgeshire councillor elected in 2025, was convicted in April 2026 under Section 106 of the Representation of the People Act 1983 for making false statements about a rival candidate. His conviction vacated his council seat.Source: Lowdown
- Which Reform UK councillor was convicted of an election offence in 2026?
- Andy Osborn, a Reform UK councillor on Cambridgeshire County Council, was convicted under Section 106 RPA 1983 in April 2026, making him the first Reform UK elected official convicted under that provision.Source: Lowdown
- Why was Andy Osborn convicted under election law?
- Osborn posted a false claim on Facebook that Conservative candidate Samantha Hoy had been sacked for fraud. District Judge Nina Tempia rejected his claim that the account had been hacked and found him guilty under Section 106 RPA 1983.Source: Lowdown
- What happens to a councillor convicted under Section 106 RPA?
- A Section 106 conviction automatically vacates the council seat, triggering a by-election. The offender cannot stand in that by-election.Source: Lowdown
- Is Andy Osborn the first Reform UK councillor convicted of an election offence?
- Yes. Osborn is the first Reform UK elected official to be convicted under Section 106 RPA 1983, and the first local government conviction under the provision since the Phil Woolas precedent of 2010.Source: Lowdown
Background
Andy Osborn, aged 74, was a Reform UK councillor on Cambridgeshire County Council elected in May 2025 to represent the Roman Bank and Peckover division. On 16 April 2026 he became the first Reform UK elected official to be convicted under Section 106 of the Representation of the People Act 1983, which criminalises false statements about a candidate's personal character or conduct published with intent to affect an election result.
Osborn, of March, Cambridgeshire, had been chairman of the North East Cambridgeshire Reform Party. Days before the May 2025 poll, a post appeared on a Reform UK Facebook forum claiming that Conservative candidate Samantha Hoy had worked in care but "was sacked for fraud." Osborn claimed in court that his account had been hacked; District Judge Nina Tempia, sitting at Westminster Magistrates' Court, dismissed that defence and convicted him. He was ordered to pay £1,800 (£1,000 fine, £400 costs, £400 surcharge).
The conviction automatically vacated his council seat and triggers a by-election. The case is the first local government Section 106 prosecution to result in a conviction since the Phil Woolas precedent of 2010, and arrives in the middle of Reform UK's highest-profile national campaign, sharpening scrutiny of the party's candidate vetting.
