Green Party Manifesto and Gorton upset throw Starmer under intense pressure

The Green Party’s victory in the Gorton and Denton by-election has thrust local campaigning themes from the green party manifesto into the national spotlight, and roiled the governing party at a moment when its leadership is already under strain.

Greens take Gorton and Denton; local candidate makes history

The Green Party won the Gorton and Denton by-election, with Reform UK finishing second and Labour coming third in a seat the party had held for nearly a century. The winner, 34-year-old Hannah Spencer, is a plumber who sits on the local council; she becomes the party’s first ever MP in the north of England and the fifth Green MP in the Commons. The Greens say the seat had been their 127th target.

Spencer dismissed accusations of sectarian politics during the campaign and said her party had united voters around concerns on the cost of living, public services and the war in Gaza. She said: "I know in my heart, and everyone knows here, everybody here belongs. Everybody deserves to have their needs met. Everyone deserves a voice in our democracy. " She told supporters the result showed the Greens "can win anywhere" and called it "just the beginning, " predicting further gains in English council elections and the Welsh Senedd in May.

Starmer vows to fight on as Labour faces internal pressure

Sir Keir Starmer described the result as "very disappointing" and has vowed to "keep on fighting" after a devastating defeat that many inside his party view as a major blow ahead of the May elections in Scotland, Wales and some English councils. He told colleagues he was "getting on with the hard yards" of turning Labour's fortunes around and later wrote to his MPs accusing the Greens of embracing a "divisive, sectarian" form of politics and branding their policies "extreme. "

That letter drew a sharp rebuttal from Green leader Zack Polanski, who accused the prime minister of trying to "smear voters as extremists. " Former deputy Angela Rayner said the defeat must be a "wake up call" and called on the government to be "braver. " Some colleagues blamed the party’s decision to block Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham from standing in the seat; Burnham is yet to comment and declined to speak to reporters outside an event in Manchester he attended on Friday evening.

Police and election body notified after claims of 'family voting'

Nigel Farage has reported alleged cases of "family voting" from the by-election to the police and to the Electoral Commission. Greater Manchester Police confirmed it has received a report into claims of family voting and said: "We can confirm a report has been made. We are in the process of reviewing this report and will provide a further update in due course. "

The Electoral Commission said it had received a letter and noted it does "not have a direct role in investigating allegations of electoral fraud, which is a matter for the police. " It added: "We work closely with electoral administrators to offer guidance, and make sure they have arrangements in place with their local police force to respond to allegations of fraud. We can confirm that we have received a letter from Nigel Farage MP. We will carefully consider the points raised in line with our role in supporting well-run elections. "

Observers logged unusually high instances of family voting

The official election observer group Democracy Volunteers said it saw "concerningly high levels of family voting" in Gorton and Denton, reporting family voting in 15 of the 22 polling stations it was at across the constituency (there were 45 stations in total). The group said it identified 32 instances overall and claimed one polling station saw nine cases, calling it the highest levels of family voting in their 10-year history of observing elections in the UK.

Family voting—when members of the same family or household enter a voting booth together and collude or direct voting intentions—is a criminal offence under the Ballot Secrecy Act 2023. Manchester City Council said no issues had been reported and described it as "extremely disappointing" that the observers waited until after the close of polls to make the claims.

Reaction from parties and the press

A Green Party spokesman said the scale of the victory showed the party had "picked up substantial support in all parts of the constituency, in all areas, among all people, " calling it "a victory for unity over division, for hope over hate" and saying their message to lower bills, protect the NHS and public services and for peace and human rights had resonated with voters.

Several national front pages framed the by-election as a major political shock for the prime minister, running headlines such as "Starmer on ropes" and calling it a "nightmare for Labour, " and saying pressure was rising for Mr Starmer to move his party to the left; some front pages carried claims that ministers believe it is "inevitable" he will not lead Labour into the next election. One front page noted he said he would not step down and would continue to fight "for as long as I've got breath in my body. " Other front-page coverage highlighted calls to push ahead with a crackdown on migration and noted a human-interest photo spread of the new MP at work as a plasterer and plumber.

Broader front-page themes included warnings about the political impact of the result and separate national stories on diplomatic and security concerns in the Middle East, a vandalised statue and an ongoing hospital story about a high-profile prisoner — items that shared space with reaction to the by-election across national papers.

Live coverage of the result was paused by broadcasters after the declaration.

Greater Manchester Police says it will provide a further update in due course, the Electoral Commission will consider the letter it has received, and the next big electoral tests on the calendar are the May elections in Scotland, Wales and a number of English councils, when parties will seek to convert by-election momentum into wider gains.