Paul Nuttall dominates the first UKIP leadership debate - while Farage enjoys a night at a nearby pub
Adam Payne/Business Insider
The Merseyside-born candidate received the loudest cheer of any candidate when he made his way to the stage and went on to give a host of responses which had attendees on their feet in applause.
Nuttall, who has held many positions in the anti-EU party, including Nigel Farage's deputy, took questions at the Westminster hustings along with Suzanne Evans, London assembly member Peter Whittle, and outside candidate John Rees-Evans.
He said UKIP under his leadership would replace Labour as official opposition and become the "patriotic voice of working people." He also vowed to "hold Theresa May's feet to the fire" over Brexit by pressuring the prime minister to deliver a hard Brexit, including a complete divorce from the European Single Market.
The party is looking for a new leader after a turbulent few mew months which saw Diane James elected as Farage's successor in September, only to stand down 18 days later. The front-runner to fill the vacancy, Steven Woolfe, then quit the party after allegedly being punched by a fellow UKIP MEP at a meeting in Brussels.
Incidentally, Farage, who technically remains the leader until the November 28 election, was enjoying a drink at a nearby pub along with Arron Banks, who has pumped millions of pounds into the party over the last few years.
Evans, who according to bookmakers is Nuttall's closest rival in the leadership contest, promised a distinctly hardline approach to immigration, whereby all migrants would need a job and the financial means to support themselves for at least five years before being allowed entry to the country.
Adam Payne/Business Insider
The former Tory councillor also launched a scathing attack on the Labour Party, describing its leadership team as IRA-sympathisers who don't understand the lives of working people who live outside of London.
Whittle, who received the endorsement of Raheem Kassam after the former aide to Farage dropped out of the contest last week, delivered an impressive performance which seemed to resonate with many in attendance. He vowed to push back against the "spread of Sharia law" and said all UK schools should display a Union Jack and a picture of the Queen.
Interestingly, he praised Nuttall on a number of occasions, triggering speculation that he could soon drop out of the race and endorse the front-runner.
John Rees-Evans called for members to have a greater influence on party policy via an "e-democracy system" where members submit their ideas online.
He entered as a relative unknown, his only real previous moment of note coming in 2014 when he said his horse was raped by a homosexual donkey.
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