Andy Burnham has set up a potential showdown with Keir Starmer after convincingly winning the Makerfield byelection, paving the way for his return to Westminster and a likely tilt at the Labour leadership.
The outgoing mayor of Greater Manchester promised change after winning the byelection in the early hours of Friday morning with 55% of the votes and a majority almost double the size of his predecessor, Josh Simons.
The scale of the win has prompted talk among Burnham’s allies that he could replace Starmer as prime minister within weeks, if not days. Much will depend on whether the prime minister decides to fight to retain his position.
In his victory speech, Burnham said the result “could be a turning point” and that people had “voted for change, they have voted for more power for the north and everywhere forgotten by Westminster”.
He said this was Labour’s “final chance”, adding: “There will be no second chance, but it is a chance now from this result tonight to build a new politics based on unity and hope, turning away from the path that takes us to a divided politics of the kind we see in the United States.”
Senior Labour figures are now urging the prime minister to agree to a process either for a handover of power or an expedited leadership contest.
Managing Editor of Slugger O’Toole. I help to manage Slugger by taking care of the site as well as running our live events. My background is in business, marketing and IT. My politics tend towards middle-of-the-road pragmatism; I am not a member of any political party. When not stuck in front of a screen, I am a parkrun Run Director.
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