{"id":133947,"date":"2026-06-19T03:14:49","date_gmt":"2026-06-19T09:14:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/labours-andy-burnham-wins-a-special-uk-election-setting-up-a-showdown-with-starmer\/"},"modified":"2026-06-19T04:54:16","modified_gmt":"2026-06-19T10:54:16","slug":"keir-starmer-says-he-will-run-in-a-leadership-contest-as-rival-eyes-a-challenge","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/keir-starmer-says-he-will-run-in-a-leadership-contest-as-rival-eyes-a-challenge\/","title":{"rendered":"Keir Starmer says he will run in a leadership contest as rival eyes a challenge"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Britain's
Britain's Labour party's Andy Burnham leaves with his wife Marie-France Van Heel and their daughter Rosie after winning the Makerfield by-election, paving the way for a leadership challenge against Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer. in Wigan, England, Friday, June 19, 2026.(AP Photo\/Jon Super)<\/span>(AP Photo\/Jon Super)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

LONDON (AP) \u2014 British Prime Minister Keir Starmer says he will fight attempts by rival Andy Burnham to oust him from office.<\/p>\n

Starmer says he will not \u201cwalk away\u201d and will run in a leadership contest if one is triggered.<\/p>\n

Burnham, the mayor of Greater Manchester, has won a seat in Parliament in a special election and is looking to replace Starmer as leader of the Labour Party and the country.<\/p>\n

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP\u2019s earlier story follows below.<\/p>\n

LONDON (AP) \u2014 Labour\u2019s Andy Burnham<\/a>, the current mayor of Greater Manchester, has won a special election for a seat in Parliament that puts him in a position to challenge embattled Prime Minister Keir Starmer<\/a> for leadership of the country.<\/p>\n

Burnham decisively won the seat of Makerfield in northwest England over Rob Kenyon of the anti-immigration party Reform UK<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The victory announced early Friday cements the status of Burnham, a 56-year-old politician nicknamed the King of the North, as the top contender to replace Starmer as leader of the Labour Party and the country. Burnham won almost 55% of the 45,510 votes cast for a field of more than a dozen candidates, over 9,000 more than runner-up Kenyon.<\/p>\n

Burnham\u2019s victory speech left no doubt that he wants to lead the country, and not just be one of the more than 400 Labour lawmakers in the 650-seat House of Commons.<\/p>\n

\u201cEveryone knows that politics isn\u2019t working,” he said. “Everyone can feel that the country isn\u2019t where it should be. Tonight could, just could, be the turning point.\u201d<\/p>\n

Starmer, who has insisted he will fight any leadership challenge, congratulated Burnham. \u201cVoters chose Labour\u2019s campaign of hope and optimism over division and hate,\u201d the prime minister wrote on X.<\/p>\n

Burnham has led Manchester since 2017, overseeing rapid regeneration for the city where the Industrial Revolution was forged. He is pledging to repeat his signature brand of \u201cManchesterism\u201d on a national scale.<\/p>\n

Burnham said he would work to ensure that \u201cthe name Makerfield is forever synonymous with bringing about the change this country needs.\u201d<\/p>\n

He said Labour had \u201ca final chance to change” and win back voters’ trust.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut 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, dark politics of the kind we see in the United States,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Labour is in power but unpopular<\/strong><\/p>\n

Starmer\u2019s popularity has cratered since he led the center-left Labour Party to a landslide election victory<\/a> in July 2024.<\/p>\n

He has struggled to deliver promised economic growth, repair tattered public services<\/a> and ease the cost of living, and been hamstrung by repeated missteps<\/a>, including his decision to appoint Peter Mandelson<\/a>, a scandal-tarnished friend of Jeffrey Epstein, as the U.K. ambassador to the United States.<\/p>\n

Labour is losing liberal voters to the growing Green Party, and facing a rising Reform UK<\/a>, which consistently leads in nationwide opinion polls. The Nigel Farage<\/a> -led party has rapidly gained ground in post-industrial northern England areas like Makerfield, some 200 miles (320 kilometers) northwest of London.<\/p>\n

Burnham\u2019s resounding victory gives Labour new hope of stopping the Reform tide. Farage acknowledged he was \u201cdisappointed, no question about it,\u201d with the result of Thursday\u2019s vote.<\/p>\n

A dismal performance<\/a> by Labour in May\u2019s local elections spurred scores of lawmakers to demand Starmer\u2019s resignation. He has refused to budge, but senior colleagues are trying to force a change.<\/p>\n

Wes Streeting<\/a> resigned as health secretary in May, saying that \u201cwhere we need vision, we have a vacuum.\u201d Streeting has said he will run in a leadership contest if there is one.<\/p>\n

Then Josh Simons, the Labour lawmaker for Makerfield, stepped down to trigger a special election and give Burnham the chance to return to Parliament.<\/p>\n

Britain\u2019s parliamentary system allows governing parties to change leaders midterm, with the winner becoming prime minister without the need for a national election. Under Labour rules, a lawmaker can challenge the leader if they have backing from a fifth of the party\u2019s House of Commons lawmakers \u2014 a number that stands at 81.<\/p>\n

The victorious Burnham will head to London to be sworn in as a lawmaker as soon as Monday. He\u2019s likely to seek a meeting with Starmer to argue that the prime minister should exit gracefully and set a timetable for his departure.<\/p>\n

Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy said Burnham and Starmer would in the next few days have to \u201chave a conversation about what comes next.\u201d<\/p>\n

Labour lawmaker Louise Haigh, a Burnham ally, said Starmer should \u201cdo what\u2019s best for both the country and the Labour Party\u201d and \u201cconsider an orderly and managed transition.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAndy won\u2019t be doing anything rash or hasty,\u201d she told Sky News. \u201cI\u2019m really hopeful the prime minister and Andy can come to an agreement.\u201d<\/p>\n

Burnham\u2019s victory piles pressure on Starmer to quit<\/strong><\/p>\n

Starmer has so far insisted he has no intention of leaving his post.<\/p>\n

\u201cI will fight if there\u2019s a challenge,\u201d he said at the G7 summit in France this week. \u201cWe won a significant general election result in 2024, with a mandate to bring about change. I\u2019m not going to walk away from that.\u201d<\/p>\n

Starmer suggested that he could offer Burnham a Cabinet post, telling Sky News on Wednesday that \u201cI want him to have a big role in government.\u201d Allies of Burnham indicated that he wasn\u2019t interested.<\/p>\n

Despite his stubborn determination, Starmer could be forced out if several members of the Cabinet tell him the game is up and quit, or threaten to quit, in protest.<\/p>\n

There could then be a leadership contest, or a coronation, depending on whether other potential candidates think Burnham has an unassailable lead.<\/p>\n

Rob Ford, professor of political science at the University of Manchester, said \u201cthe pressure on Starmer will be very hard to resist\u201d now that Burnham is back in Parliament.<\/p>\n

Ford said defeating Reform UK in Makerfield strengthens Burnham\u2019s claim to be Labour\u2019s biggest asset.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe narrative he can bring is, \u2018No one else could have won that seat. I won that. I bring something unique. I bring an ability to renew our appeal,\u2019\u201d Ford said.<\/p>\n

\"Labour
Labour party's Andy Burnham speaks after winning the Makerfield by-election, paving the way for a leadership challenge against Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer. in Wigan, England, Friday, June 19, 2026.(AP Photo\/Jon Super)<\/span>(AP Photo\/Jon Super)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Andy
Andy Burnham, Britain's Labour candidate for Makerfield, gestures in front of supporters during the by-election in Makerfield, England, Thursday, June 18, 2026 where voters are choosing a new lawmaker with Andy Burnham of the Labour Party as the leading contender.(AP Photo\/Jon Super)<\/span>(AP Photo\/Jon Super)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Britain's
Britain's Reform Party leader Nigel Farage and local candidate Rob Kenyon ashake hands at a polling station during the by-election in Makerfield, England, Thursday, June 18, 2026.(AP Photo\/Jon Super)<\/span>(AP Photo\/Jon Super)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Vote
Vote counts started after the Makerfield by-election in Wigan, England, Friday, June 19, 2026.(AP Photo\/Jon Super)<\/span>(AP Photo\/Jon Super)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Britain's Labour party's Andy Burnham leaves with his wife Marie-France Van Heel and their daughter Rosie after winning the Makerfield by-election, paving the way for a leadership challenge against Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer. in Wigan, England, Friday, June 19, 2026.(AP Photo\/Jon Super)(AP Photo\/Jon Super) LONDON (AP) \u2014 British Prime Minister Keir Starmer says he […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":133948,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[5734],"tags":[],"naviga_topic":[],"class_list":["post-133947","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-associated-press"],"acf":[],"author_name":"dh_admin","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/133947","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=133947"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/133947\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":133982,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/133947\/revisions\/133982"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/133948"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=133947"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=133947"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=133947"},{"taxonomy":"naviga_topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/naviga_topic?post=133947"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}