Reform UK Hartlepool "Losing the Social Media Battle" — And Voters Along With It...

Speculation Reform UK may not do as well in Hartlepool's May 2026 local elections as its members had once hoped, prompting bosses to call for a swift regime change according to sources.

30th October 2025

Reform UK entered the political arena in Hartlepool promising to shake up the establishment, energise local communities which had been ignored by the mainstream parties, and give a voice to those in Hartlepool who felt Westminster had left them behind. Yet here in Hartlepool, it seems the party, once poised to be a significant thorn in the side to the labour party now appears to be losing the most important battleground of modern politics: the online conversation.

A stream of comments from Reform members and supporters from across Teesside & County Durham paints a picture of a party seemingly frozen in place — either unable or unwilling to communicate with the electorate, with many Reform members claiming the party is seemingly more focused on internal power plays, rather than actually winning over real people.

At the centre of this is Reform’s interim regional leadership. The interim chair in Hartlepool — who reportedly stepped down over a month ago — who's been accused not just of disengagement with the local electorate, but of presiding over silence, stagnation and an almost total disconnect with Reform's younger voters.

“Reform Hartlepool hasn't to this date held an AGM. They haven't shared the rules with members, allowed members to vote on rule amendments and have shut up shop a long time ago.”

Reform's decision to admit Rural West Councillor Mike Young (Right) into the party was seen as a decision made over members heads & spurred primarily over Mr Young's 'Masonic' ties to the Interim Chairs Husband, a fellow Freemason

Despite resigning, Reform Members claim no Annual General Meeting (AGM) has been held. Members claim they've been kept in the dark over party issues, blocked from participating, and effectively shut out of all party decision making. Meanwhile, Reform Hartlepool’s official page has been left gathering dust — the last notable (and perhaps controversial) post being about parachuting controversial ex-Conservative councillor for Hartlepool's Rural West Mike Young into the party. That single decision alone is said to have alienated huge swathes of Reform's members, some even turning to tearing up their memberships of the political party altogether. .

A Party Silencing Its Members From the Top Down?

Reforms Regional Director Neil McCabe is being blamed for much of Reform Hartlepool's struggles according to some of its members.

While some critics have pointed fingers at the now-departed interim chair Amanda Napper, who was the first Reform Candidate to be voted into Hartlepool earlier this year, others argue the real blame lies much higher — at regional director Neil McCabe and Reform HQ:

“It’s not her fault — the hierarchy in Reform stops you from operating independently. Regional director and head office act unilaterally and force things because they're interim.”

Another Member goes further, accusing McCabe of shutting down local activism, stifling online campaigning, and even punishing volunteers for being too proactive:

“He stopped me because the branch chair was a boomer and didn’t like social media… told me not to expose corruption… volunteers ridiculed for not door-knocking every day… it’s a dictatorship.”

From Stockton to Billingham to Hartlepool, the pattern is the same: local volunteers try to build a political momentum, using modern campaigning tools, expose issues — and instead get pushed out, silenced or ignored another member said.

A Failure to Communicate — In 2025

The ever famous phrase taken from the 1967 film Cool Hand Luke, where it seems in 2025, Reform UK is having a communication problem of its own..... & that's with both its members & its voters !

It is astonishing that a party trying to present itself as the future of British politics has seemingly failed to grasp the very basics of digital campaigning. Labour, like it or not, is winning that battlefield — and Reform is giving them a free run.

One Reform supporter summed it up perfectly:

“If their attitude doesn't change I will be looking for a new home for my vote — and I’m not the only one.”

In politics, silence is not strategy. It’s surrender. Social media isn’t optional; it’s where elections are fought — especially amongst younger voters Reform says it wants to reach.

If Reform Can’t Speak To Hartlepool, It Can’t Speak For Hartlepool

Reform Hartlepool seems to have almost abandoned social media altogether, its primary platform for communicating with its younger voter base, leaving many locals unknown as to what the party is doing to win the May 2026 local elections.

With Hartlepool expecting to see local elections taking place in less than seven months, Reform supporters have every right to expect transparency, communication, and a modern, digital-first approach. Instead, they're being met with internal turf wars, opaque decision-making and an almost total social media paralysis, which many of its members now say is not how you win elections — it’s how you waste political momentum and push voters back into the arms of the old parties such as Labour & the Conservatives.

The message from Reform's local members couldn’t be clearer: If Reform UK can’t communicate with the public, the public won’t communicate with them — especially at the ballot box.