UKIP leader Paul Nuttall "probably will" stand in Britain’s 8 June general election, according to his deputy.
Peter Whittle said Mr Nuttall was "still thinking about it" after the party leader refused to commit to fighting for a Westminster seat.
Mr Whittle, a member of the London Assembly, said he was also considering standing for Parliament.
At a campaign event yesterday, Mr Nuttall was asked several times whether he would stand.
Following the event, Mr Nuttall then waited in an apparently locked room, emerging to a barrage of reporters' questions as he left the Marriott County Hall hotel in London.
Mr Nuttall is expected to stand in the election given his role as a party leader, but he will be keen to avoid a repeat of his defeat in the Stoke-on-Trent Central by-election in February.
Asked if there was any other example of an eligible party leader failing to stand at a general election, Mr Whittle said: "I'm not sure about that. We had a leader in Nigel Farage, an incredibly effective one, who was leader whilst we had an MP in Parliament - Douglas Carswell.
"I'm sure Paul probably will stand, I don't know, I think he is still thinking about it - as indeed am I."
On BBC Radio 4's Today programme, Mr Whittle insisted Mr Nuttall "did not lock himself in a room" at the event.
"Some people have got it in for Paul," he suggested, claiming his critics wanted to "trivialise" an important policy launch.
