Gorton And Denton By-election Sees Polls Open as Tactical Voting Debate Deepens
The Gorton And Denton By-election is under way, with polling stations opening at 07: 00 GMT and set to close at 22: 00 as voters across parts of Greater Manchester choose a new MP. The contest, triggered by the resignation of former Labour MP Andrew Gwynne on 22 January on grounds of ill health, has become a focal point for arguments over tactical voting and the strengths and limits of First Past The Post.
Gorton And Denton By-election timetable and candidate list
The parliamentary contest is scheduled for Thursday 26 February, with results set to be declared overnight and expected in the early hours of Friday morning. Polling stations opened at 07: 00 GMT and will close at 22: 00. The vacancy followed Andrew Gwynne’s resignation on 22 January for reasons described as ill health.
The published alphabetical list of candidates includes Sir Oink A-Lot of The Official Monster Raving Loony Party and Sebastian Moore of the Social Democratic Party. The campaign has also been described as a three-way race in reporting that highlighted strong challenges from Labour, Reform UK and the Green Party.
Andrew Gwynne’s resignation prompts a by-election
Andrew Gwynne’s departure from the Commons on 22 January created the immediate cause of the by-election, bringing polling to parts of Greater Manchester on the date set. That sequence—resignation, formal vacancy and a by-election on 26 February—has produced a compressed timetable that pushes the result into the overnight period following polls closing.
Three-way race: Labour, Reform UK and the Green Party
Commentary has emphasised that the contest is no longer a straightforward Labour hold. Observers have described it as a three-horse race involving Labour, Reform UK and the Green Party, with tactical voting urged by some actors who want to prevent a Reform UK victory. One high-profile figure named in discussion of strategic voting is Matt Goodwin on the Reform side; the tactical calculations—who to back to stop whom—have become central to the campaign narrative.
Electoral Reform Society critique and the YouGov simulation
The Electoral Reform Society has argued that First Past The Post is failing to reflect voters’ preferences in multi-party contests like this one. It notes that the 2024 UK general election was the most disproportional ever, with Labour winning almost two-thirds of MPs from just over one-third of votes. The society warns that where three or more parties contest a seat, candidates can be elected with support from fewer than a third of voters and that the ballots of more than two-thirds of people risk being effectively ignored.
Complementing that critique, a YouGov model cited in analysis last autumn suggested a scenario in which Reform could win 48% of Westminster seats on as little as 27% of the vote—an outcome used to argue the system can produce majority control on minority vote shares. What makes this notable is that those mathematical possibilities amplify voters’ worries about wasted votes and encourage campaigns to focus on tactical argument rather than on policy detail.
Proposals and contrasts: Single Transferable Vote and tactical campaigning
The debate has included comparisons with other systems. Scottish local elections use the Single Transferable Vote, a form of proportional representation in which voters number candidates and preferences transfer until a candidate attains a majority. Advocates say that preferential voting allows people to express genuine first choices without fear of wasting their ballot and reduces the pressure to vote tactically—an outcome Electoral Reform Society argues would change the dynamics seen in Gorton and Denton.
Local coverage, other headlines and how to follow events
Local media guidance on following the by-election notes ways to keep up with coverage: listeners can hear Radio Manchester on Sounds and follow Manchester on Facebook, X and Instagram; story ideas can be sent by WhatsApp to 0808 100 2230. Other local headlines running alongside the by-election coverage include questions about when the next UK general election will be held as the by-election proceeds, a police response to an unauthorised traveller caravan camp in Warrington, Cheshire East leaders surviving a vote of no-confidence, residents' dismay over a 'cruise ship' warehouse, and barriers placed around a popular restaurant in Warrington. National items cited in wider media discussion include Democrats defending Hillary Clinton’s House testimony about Epstein and a Ministry of Defence review into whether Epstein used RAF bases.
Campaigning, tactical appeals and the narrow timetable mean the Gorton And Denton By-election will be watched closely: the immediate effect of the resignation on 22 January has been to concentrate attention on this single seat, while broader critiques of First Past The Post and simulations about seat-vote disproportionality have fed a wider conversation about electoral reform ahead of future contests.
