UKIP increased its share of the vote at the last election but failed to get any MPs elected At least four people are standing to become the next leader of the UK Independence Party, as the deadline for nominations passes.
Candidates had until 1700 BST to get the support of 51 party members needed to take part in the contest.
Former leader Nigel Farage, fellow MEPs David Campbell-Bannerman and Gerard Batten and economist Tim Congdon have already got enough backing to stand.
The result of the election will be announced in November.
It will be the second leadership contest in less than a year after Lord Pearson of Rannoch stood down earlier this month after only nine months in the role.
He said he was not cut out for the job and a younger man was needed to take the party forward.
Mr Farage, who led the party between 2006 and 2009, is regarded as the favourite to take the job for a second time.
The leader of the party in the European Parliament, Mr Farage was injured in a light aircraft crash on 6 May – the day of the general election.
After the accident Mr Farage – who failed in his attempt to get elected to Westminster in the seat of the Commons Speaker John Bercow – said he planned to spend more time with his family.
But he announced his decision to stand for the leadership at the party’s conference earlier this month, saying he believed he was best placed to campaign on the key issue of Europe and help win seats at council level.
Both Mr Campbell-Bannerman and Mr Batten have stood in previous leadership contests.
Mr Campbell-Bannerman, who wrote the party’s 2010 election manifesto, came third behind Mr Farage in 2006. Mr Batten came second in the 2009 contest, in which Lord Pearson was elected, with 25% of the vote.
Each has argued that the party’s organisation needs to be overhauled, with a focus on a wider range of policies.
Professor Tim Congdon, the founder of economic analysts Lombard Street Research and a losing UKIP candidate in May’s general election, has also qualified to stand.
Other possible contenders include MEP Mike Nattrass, who stood last year, and Viscount Monckton, a senior party figure who was once head of the No 10 Policy Unit during the 1980s.
Ballot papers will be sent out to the party’s 18,000 members next week – with the outcome to be announced on 5 November.
The UK Independence Party, which has long campaigned for the UK to pull out of the European Union, failed to make its hoped-for breakthrough in May’s election.
However, its share of the vote did increase by nearly 1% as it polled more than 919,000 votes.
Former MEP Jeffrey Titford was named acting leader earlier this month.
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