Paul Nuttall has been elected as Ukip leader, replacing interim chief Nigel Farage
Paul Nuttall has been appointed as Ukip leader, putting an end to one of the more dramatic party leadership election processes the UK has seen in recent years.
Nuttall is MEP for the north west of England, and previously served as Ukip's party chairman, deputy leader and leader of the Ukip MEPs.
Technically, Nuttall replaces Nigel Farage, who resigned in July in the wake of the Brexit vote, but resumed up the leadership role on an interim basis in October when Diane James quit the post after just 18 days. She then quit the party completely a month later.
In the wake of James stepping down, previous hopeful Steven Woolfe looked likely to step into the top spot – however, his hospitalisation following an altercation with party colleague Mike Hookem at the European Parliament in Strasbourg led to Woolfe's departure not long after. Woolfe accused Hookem of punching him, but Hookem denied that any fight took place, deeming it more of a scuffle. European Parliament president Martin Schulz referred the incident to French police.
On quitting the party, Woolfe described Ukip as "ungovernable" and said he would sit in the European Parliament as an independent MEP.
The confirmation of a new leader for his party should come as a relief to Farage, who said in his July resignation speech that he wanted his life back – which potentially includes plans to move to the US, according to reports last week.