New Reform UK mayor storms off during TV interview after journalist called out controversial comment in speech
Dame Andrea Jenkyns' mayoral term has gotten off to a rocky start after she was filmed storming out of interview when a journalist challenged divisive comments made in her acceptance speech.
The former Conservative MP became the first Reform UK candidate to win a mayoral election, winning the Greater Lincolnshire seat with a majority of nearly 40,000 votes.
After a controversial campaign, Jenkyns decided to celebrate her win by making a series of digs at her rivals and accusing campaigners of 'importing' US-style dirty tricks prior to the election.
However, it was a comment she made about a rival candidate's accent which raised eyebrows amongst viewers.
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Responding to claims that she'd been 'parachuted in' to contest the election for Reform, Jenkyns said: "The campaign was also filled with irony, as one of the candidates said I was parachuted in... She said it with her South African accent."
The comment was met with a mixed response from those in the audience, with the 50-year-old later being challenged over her decision to reference another candidate's nationality by a Sky News journalist while answering press questions.
When asked by the reporter to clarify her comments, Jenkyns claimed she'd mentioned the candidate's international accent as a means of calling out the 'irony' of her comments.
"Because the irony of saying someone's being parachuted in who's not even from the country." she said.
The newly-elected mayor then became visibly irate when asked if she believed if someone with a foreign accent couldn't be from Lincolnshire and abruptly cut the interview short.
"I think actually, I'm not even going to answer any more of your questions," Jenkyns responded.
"I think that your questioning is quite divisive. You're looking into things when it was a little play with words, it was a little joke because of the irony. Do you not understand irony?"
Jenkyns used the majority of her acceptance speech to criticise rival candidates, which included representatives from Labour, Conservatives, The Green Party and an independent candidate, after her eligibility to stand for election was questioned.
According to the BBC, it was claimed that Jenkyns was breaking electoral rules as she did not primarily reside within the county — a claim which was later dismissed.
"I've never experienced such negativity and soul destroying campaigns against me like this one. It was soul destroying," she said.
"The dirty tricks in the US politics, I believe it's now being imported here into Britain."
Brenna Cooper