Andy Burnham wins Makerfield by-election, paving way for him to challenge Keir Starmer as Labour leader

[StevieM]

Source: BBC

Burnham says the result "made a loud cry for change". Addressing his own party, he says: "This is a final chance to change."

"There will be no second chance," he says, adding there is an opportunity now to build a "new politics based on unity and hope".

Expressing sadness that his victory brings an end to his tenure as Greater Manchester mayor, Burnham says England's north-south divide cannot be closed "without big change at national level".

"I always knew that one day I would seek to go back to Westminster to complete that unfinished business so that Makerfield and Greater Manchester, and the north of England, can fulfil their potential," he says.

Read more: https://www.bbc.com/news/live/c3928mlyle8t

[DBoon]

1. With help from a cyberman and a furry

or is that a dalek in the middle?

[StevieM]

3. His name is Count Binface.

His real name is Jonathan Harvey, and he represents the Count Binface Party.

I believe the guy in the fox suit is Robert Pownall, an independent candidate.

[House of Roberts]

6. This is a cyberman.

and this is a Dalek



What you have looks like a trash can headed what the fuck?

[msongs]

2. so he has not served one day back in the commons and he wants to be PM?

[StevieM]

5. It is widely expected that he will be the next PM and it will happen relatively quickly.

Voters in Makerfield understood that they were almost certainly electing the next prime minister if they sent him to Westminster.

Check out the odds of Burnham taking over as leader of the Labour Party, and therefore Prime Minister.

https://www.oddschecker.com/politics/british-politics/next-labour-leader

[muriel_volestrangler]

8. Some strange odds there

I never would have put Alistair Carns as 2nd place - he's only been an MP since 2024, and I reckon most people, like me, had not heard of him until resigned about a week ago because of the defence budget. I've never heard of anyone suggesting Darren Jones; and I'd put Angela Rayner more like number 2 - though it may be that she's told people that she supports Burnham, and I've just missed it.

But the basic "it'll be Burnham" message is universally agreed on.

[StevieM]

9. Rayner has made it clear that she is supporting Burnham.

At this point, though, I think everyone realizes that Burnham will be the one to replace Keir Starmer. The only person who might not realize that yet is Starmer himself.

During the campaign, Burnham said that a leadership contest was initiated by Wes Streeting, and he planned on joining it. That made him sound less ambitious, aggressive, or whatever word you want to use. But it is doubtful that Streeting will try to challenge Burnham, assuming he could even get the 81 MP backers he would need to enter the race, which is unlikely.

Alistair Carns has been getting bets placed on him for a while because he came out after the losses in the local elections in May and said that someone needed to challenge Starmer, and if nobody else would, then he would do it himself.

Those numbers just represent the random bets that were made by people on a longshot idea that ran through their minds. None of them are expected to pay off. When the numbers get that low, you are no longer talking about comparative odds.

Burnham is essentially being given a 96 to 98 percent chance of becoming the next prime minister.

[muriel_volestrangler]

7. Cabinet loyalists tell Starmer he has the weekend to set out timetable for exit

Cabinet ministers loyal to Keir Starmer have told him he faces being forced out of office by his party if he does not set a timetable for his departure by the end of the weekend.
...
One MP said they believed there were about 200 Labour MPs prepared, if necessary, to sign Burnham’s nomination papers for a challenge, though his supporters are hoping for a coronation.

Starmer called members of the cabinet on Friday afternoon to set out his determination to fight on. The transport secretary, Heidi Alexander, is said by sources to be among those who expressed concerns in a call on Friday.

At least two ministers, Ed Miliband and Shabana Mahmood, have previously suggested to Starmer that he should set out a timetable for his departure.

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2026/jun/19/keir-starmer-pressure-andy-burnham-wes-streeting-allies-not-fight-leadership-challenge