British Prime Minister Keir Starmer suffered another blow to his leadership on Friday, after the left-wing Green Party won a special election in a seat the governing Labour party has dominated for decades.
The result in Gorton and Denton, in Greater Manchester, is likely to intensify speculation about Starmer’s position, who has come under pressure from the appointment of Peter Mandelson as U.S. ambassador despite his association with Jeffrey Epstein, and a series of departures from Downing Street.
Green Party candidate Hannah Spencer received 14,980 votes, or 40.7% of the vote, notching the party’s first-ever by-election victory.
The right-wing Reform UK party finished second with 10,578 votes on 28.7%, while Labour came third with 9,364 votes on 25.4%.
British government bond yields, known as gilts, were slightly higher on the news. The 10-year gilt yield rose as much as one basis point to 4.290% on Friday morning, while the 30-year gilt yield was seen marginally higher at 5.083%.
