Corey Edwards - Lead candidate for Pen-y-Bont Bro Morgannwg (Reform UK) — stood down | Reform Watch

Profile and accountability tracker for Corey Edwards, Lead candidate for Pen-y-Bont Bro Morgannwg (Reform UK) — stood down. Reform UK.

Role: Lead candidate for Pen-y-Bont Bro Morgannwg (Reform UK) — stood down

Party: Reform UK

Corey Edwards was the lead candidate on Reform UK's list for Pen-y-Bont Bro Morgannwg (Bridgend and Vale of Glamorgan) in the 2026 Senedd elections. He stepped down around 27 March 2026, shortly after the candidate list was published, when a 2019 photograph emerged appearing to show him performing a Nazi salute. Edwards had prior Conservative links, having stood in local elections in 2022 and served as a special adviser to David TC Davies. He cited mental health reasons for stepping down and claimed the photo was misinterpreted, noting his grandfather fought against the Nazis. Nigel Farage initially defended it as a Fawlty Towers imitation.

Recorded incidents (showing 1-1 of 1)

Corey Edwards steps down as Reform candidate after apparent Nazi salute

Category: racism

Location: Wales

In March 2026 Corey Edwards, Reform UK's lead candidate for the Pen-y-bont Bro Morgannwg Senedd constituency, stepped down from the campaign after a photograph emerged showing him apparently making a Nazi salute, raising his right arm with a finger held under his nose. Reform UK said Edwards had informed the party he was stepping down for reasons of his mental health and asked for privacy. Nigel Farage defended him, suggesting the pose might have been an imitation of the Basil Fawlty character and saying he would not suspend him, while Edwards said the photograph was taken many years ago, described Hitler's regime as barbaric, and said he had been imitating the goalkeeper Wayne Hennessey. His departure came amid wider unrest in Reform UK's Senedd selection process in Wales, with other candidates including Patrick Benham-Crosswell and the Merthyr Tydfil councillor Andrew Barry also quitting and criticising the party for favouring former Conservative figures. Benham-Crosswell said, "The Reform Party has betrayed its early members' vision, labour and achievements. I won't be a party to that, so I resign."