Starmer urges voters to reject ‘toxic’ politics in last ditch plea to win crucial Gorton and Denton by-election
Sir Keir Starmer has made a final desperate appeal to voters in Gorton and Denton, urging them to oppose “toxic” policies and choose between “unity or division” in a crucial by-election that experts believe could herald a new era in British politics.
While the vote was expected to be a major test for his leadership, the prime minister made a last-ditch attempt to persuade voters to support his party. Labor looks to be neck-and-neck with the Greens and Reform to win the Greater Manchester seat, with any of the three parties standing a chance of winning.
It came as Green Party leader Zack Polanski said Independent He said his party was “on the verge of transforming British politics”, with the party potentially pulling off a shock victory and risking falling into third place, with Labor the seventh safest seat in the country.
In a final rallying cry, Sir Keir said: “The choice in today’s by-election could not be starker: unity or division. Cutting the cost of living with Labor or driving a rift between Reform communities. Moving forward together or eliminating the anger and division that holds our country back.”
“Reform candidate Matthew Goodwin thinks people of color can’t be British and wants women who choose not to have children to pay more tax. Vote Labor in Gorton and Denton today to send him and his poisonous policies out.”
He added: “Only Labour’s Angeliki Stogia can unite communities in Manchester and Tameside and stop the Reformation. A vote for the Greens or any other party risks Goodwin coming in through the back door.”
As Nigel Farage made a final trip to Gorton and Denton on Wednesday evening, leading pollsters said they believed the by-election was a microcosm of what will happen in British politics as we approach a general election, suggesting it could lead to a “realignment” of the left.
Professor Sir John Curtice said: “All the polls told us was what we could already have predicted – that there are at least three parties that are making noise. This will not make it any easier for voters considering doing so to figure out how best to vote tactically. But the outcome is likely to reflect the fragmentation of British politics.”
Meanwhile, Labor MPs expressed fears that a Greens victory would be worse than a Reform victory.
One MP said: “This will allow our voters to vote Green because they will believe an alternative party on the left can win. This will split the vote across dozens of seats and allow Reform to get in with a split vote on the left.”
A senior minister told Independent: “My fear is that we will react to the Greens’ victory by attacking the left too hard, which will put us in an even worse situation than we are now.”
Pollster Lord Robert Hayward said: “If the Greens win, that’s the shape of what’s to come, both because it shows people are willing to leave Labor to vote for the Greens, and because Labor and Your Party stand with the Greens.
“Now, if you look at various places across the country, particularly the east London boroughs of Redbridge, Newham, Waltham Forest, Hackney… if the Greens can show that they can be successful in a coalition with progressives, then I wouldn’t be surprised at all to see joint tickets against Labor in some boroughs of London.”
Labor MPs have argued that the prime minister will not face an immediate challenge even if the party comes third because they do not want a leadership election while they fight local and devolved elections on May 7.
However, some people believe that these maneuvers will take place after the local elections.
One minister noted: “If things go badly in May then the prime minister will be very vulnerable.”
Sir Keir, however, tried to ignore the threat from the Greens and portrayed the contest as a direct fight against Reformation.
He tried to get the message across during a heated session of Prime Minister’s Questions in the House of Commons on Wednesday, where he confronted Nigel Farage and launched a fresh attack on the Greens’ drug legalization policy.
Sir Keir attacked Mr Farage over a Facebook post shared by Reform’s Lancashire Council deputy leader Simon Evans, which featured a photo of Bolsover MP Natalie Fleet.
The post also included a comment that read: “You napping cow, you should be shot.”
Mr Evans later deleted the post and posted an apology on Facebook, saying he “didn’t notice the attached text” and had made a “genuine mistake”.
The Prime Minister said: “When death threats were made to Mr Farage, I stood outside this letterbox and publicly condemned them.
“If he has any decency and backbone, he will stand up, apologize, condemn the comments made and fire the person in his party.”
The Labor leader also criticized the Greens, saying: “The Green Party’s policy is not only irresponsible, it is reprehensible, legalizing cocaine, heroin, ketamine and the date rape drug GHB, which we know is used to spike women’s drinks.”
He said the policy would “destroy lives” and increase anti-social behaviour.
Green Party Gorton and Denton by-election candidate Hannah Spencer has previously said she thinks “decriminalization is a conversation we need to have”.
Mr. Polanski told Independent: “We’re confident and we’ve run a great campaign. This is one of Labour’s safest seats and if we can win here, there’s no room for the Greens to go. Labor has dragged its core voter base to its left, making Starmer the worst Labor leader in history.”
“What was consistent throughout the campaign was that voters wanted an end to the dismal status quo, and voters tended to see that change coming through the Greens or Reform, but as the campaign progressed they increasingly began to reject Reform’s divisive candidate in the same way and turned to the Greens’ message of hope and change.
“We’re ahead, it’s close, but the polls clearly show that if you want to stop Reform you need to vote Green.”
Labor won the seat in 2024 with a majority of 13,413 votes and more than half the vote, but the party’s popularity has fallen since Sir Keir came into 10th place.
If Labor loses, it will be the first time in almost 100 years that Manchester’s Gorton ward is not represented by an MP from Sir Keir’s party.
If Reform wins, the number of MPs in the House of Commons will rise to nine, the same level as the SNP.
If the Greens win the seat, it will be the first time in history the party has won a by-election to the House of Commons. This will also be the first time the Greens have won seats in the House of Commons in the north of England.
