Scottish voters will head to the polls in just a few hours' time for a hotly-contested by-election where Reform could be set for a major gain.

A seat in the Scottish Parliament representing Hamilton, Larkhall & Stonehouse is up for grabs following the death of SNP veteran Christina McKelvie after her battle with breast cancer.

Pollsters are predicting a tight three-way race between the SNP, Labour and Reform UK.

Traditionally a marginal force north of the border, Reform looks to be emerging as a serious contender, challenging both Labour and the SNP in a constituency which has historically been a Labour stronghold.

A seat in the Scottish Parliament representing Hamilton, Larkhall & Stonehouse is up for grabs - with Ross Lambie leading the charge for Reform UK

Nigel Farage believes his party has laid the groundwork for the "biggest earthquake Scottish politics has ever seen".

But, according to Scottish Labour boss Anas Sarwar, Farage is "a dangerous clown and the people of Scotland see right through him".

Alongside Sarwar in the anti-Reform camp sits First Minister John Swinney.

"Be in no doubt, Nigel Farage doesn't care about Scotland. He poses a threat to our values and must be stopped, and only the SNP can do that," Swinney blasted on the campaign trail.

Labour, meanwhile, is "invisible", his candidate Katy Loudon has said.

"The SNP are the favourites... but if Hamilton follows evidence of the national polls, it will be a close contest," polling guru Sir John Curtice told the BBC.

Anas Sarwar (right) and First Minister John Swinney have campaigned hard against Reform UK

"It ought to be close between SNP and Reform, and maybe Reform will do somewhat better than in the national polls.

"But we are looking at a winner with less than a third of the vote and winning by a small margin."

The most recent nationwide poll north of the border points to three parties on the rise, thanks to a collapsing Labour vote share.

Those are the SNP, averaging a 35 per cent vote share, Reform at 16, and the Lib Dems at 11.

Of that climbing trio, Reform appears to be surging fastest.

And just days ago, it secured council defections in Scotland from both Labour and the Tories.

But the result of June 5's by-election, expected at around 5am on Friday, could reveal just how far Reform has progressed in Scotland.

Nigel Farage believes his party has laid the groundwork for the 'biggest earthquake Scottish politics has ever seen'

Reform appears to be surging fastest out of three parties on the rise in Scotland - it places third in this Scottish polling average

If the polls are to be believed, Farage says, "we are beginning to eclipse Labour to be the second most popular party in Scottish politics".

"It's a two-horse race between the SNP and Reform UK and we're going to give it a massive push," his deputy leader Richard Tice said.

The party's by-election candidate, Ross Lambie, told GB News: "There is a sense of urgency on the doors.

"People feel the country is facing a pivotal moment where we either surrender to another 10 years of nothingness and another lost generation, or we have the guts to make some big decisions, like scrap net zero and direct that funding to our local services, cut waiting lists, boost policing, and lower the tax burden."

An SNP spokesman said: "Farage poses a threat to our NHS, and we will confront him at every turn.

"SNP policies like record funding for our NHS, free prescriptions and free tuition - that's what it is to put Scotland first, which the SNP will always do.

"These policies are under threat from the likes of Farage. Only a vote for the SNP can stop Reform UK on June 5."