LABOUR finished third as it lost the northern English seat of Gorton and Denton in Manchester to the Greens in a by-election result on Friday that increases pressure on prime minister Keir Starmer.
The party also came behind Reform in the contest, in a result that underlines strains in UK's two-party system.
The outcome in a seat Labour has held for decades points to pressure on the party from both sides of the political spectrum. It is likely to raise questions about how long the 63-year-old Starmer can remain in office.
The result suggests voters are turning to smaller parties over issues such as the high cost of living and irregular immigration.
Labour had won the constituency with almost 51 per cent of the vote at the July 2024 general election that brought Starmer to power and ended 14 years of Conservative rule.
Since then, his government has faced policy reversals and disputes, including over the appointment of Peter Mandelson, an associate of late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, as Britain’s ambassador to Washington.
Unpopular Starmer
Polls suggest Starmer is the most unpopular British prime minister since surveys began. Earlier this month, he faced calls from within his own party to resign.
Hannah Spencer, a 34-year-old plumber and plasterer, won with almost 15,000 votes. She becomes the fifth MP in the 650-seat parliament for the Greens, which support higher taxes for the wealthy and are pro-Palestinian.
"People in their thousands told me, on the doorstep and at the ballot box, that what we are sick of is being let down and looked down on," she said in her victory speech, adding: "We defeated the parties of billionaire donors."
Reform candidate Matt Goodwin, a 44-year-old political scientist, secured about 10,500 votes, while Labour’s Angeliki Stogia won just over 9,300.
The Greens had not previously won a parliamentary by-election. The party ran a grassroots campaign aimed at mobilising the constituency’s 28 per cent Muslim population.
The campaign period was marked by accusations between parties of misinformation and breaches of campaign laws.
Goodwin, who has questioned whether people from ethnic minority backgrounds can automatically be considered British, said "a coalition of Islamists and woke progressives" had delivered the Greens’ win.
Immigration policies
Labour chairwoman Anna Turley called the result "clearly disappointing" but said the smaller parties offered "the politics of anger and easy answers".
Starmer has focused on Reform, led by Nigel Farage, which leads national polls, by tightening Labour’s immigration policies and rhetoric.
The approach has caused concern among parts of Labour’s left-wing base and younger voters, who are moving towards the Greens, led by Zack Polanski, who has been compared to New York mayor Zohran Mamdani.
The result will "make life for Keir Starmer even worse", veteran pollster John Curtice told the BBC.
Writing on the BBC, Curtice said the result showed that "the Conservative-Labour duopoly that has long dominated post-war British politics has never looked weaker."
The by-election was triggered by the resignation of former Labour MP Andrew Gwynne on health grounds.
Starmer is expected to face questions over his role in blocking the candidacy of Manchester mayor Andy Burnham, whose attempt to become an MP had been seen as a possible step towards a leadership challenge from the party’s left.
Labour faces further tests in May with elections in Scotland, Wales and London, which pollsters say could be difficult for the party.
The next general election is not expected until 2029.
(With inputs from agencies)
