‘Dog-whistle v fog horn’: why Rupert Lowe’s reach on X may not cut through

Rupert Lowe’s posts on X are routinely ‘liked’ tens of thousands of times, in part due to occasional amplification by Elon Musk. Photograph: Jordan Pettitt/PA

If you were looking for answers as to why Rupert Lowe, a relatively little-known Reform UK MP, thinks he can lecture Nigel Farage about running a party and winning an election, there is one place you should probably start: X.

In person Lowe can sometimes resemble a slightly embarrassing uncle at a wedding, but on the social media site formerly known as Twitter, the Great Yarmouth MP is a big name – and by some metrics, a notably bigger one even than his party leader.