Need to know
The Green Party pulled off a major upset in the Gorton and Denton by-election, seizing the long-time Labour seat and defeating Nigel Farage’s Reform Party
All you need to know about the Gorton & Denton by-election
- Green candidate Hannah Spencer stormed to victory in Gorton and Denton, in Greater Manchester, with 14,980 votes – a majority of 4,402. She triumphed over Reform candidate Matt Goodwin on 10,578 and Labour’s Angeliki Stogia on 9,364. It is the Greens’ first ever victory in a parliamentary by-election.
- Labour was pushed into third place in a seat it won with more than 13,000 votes at the 2024 election. The Greater Manchester area has been in Labour hands for nearly a hundred years.
- Keir Starmer is facing renewed pressure on his leadership after the devastating defeat. Ex-Deputy PM Angela Rayner said it must be a “wake up call” for the party. Labour MPs, unions and campaign groups are demanding a change of course ahead of crucial elections in May.
- Anger is bubbling over the decision by Labour chiefs to block Andy Burnham from standing in the race. Labour MP Karl Turner took to the airwaves today to insist the Greater Manchester Mayor could have won. Green Party leader Zack Polanski said he punched the air when he heard Mr Burnham had been barred from standing.
- Reform were sore losers as Nigel Farage claimed it was “a victory for sectarian voting and cheating”. He raised concerns about family voting – an illegal practice where two voters go into the polling booth at once, and potentially tell each other who to vote for. Election observer group Democracy Volunteers warned it had witnessed “concerningly high levels” of family voting. But Manchester City Council said no issues had been reported.
- The Tories lost their deposit after receiving less than 5% of the vote. Kemi Badenoch’s party came in distant forth with a dismal 1.9% of the vote.
READ THE FULL STORY: Keir Starmer suffers nightmare defeat in Gorton and Denton by-election
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