London —
Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham is poised to challenge Britain’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer for the country’s premiership on his return to parliament after winning a by-election in Makerfield, northwest England.
Thursday’s election, the equivalent of a US special election, was triggered to pave Burnham’s route to Downing Street.
Despite being one of the country’s most popular politicians, he was previously unable to challenge Starmer for leadership of the governing Labour Party, and the country, since he was not a sitting Member of Parliament (MP).
But, two years after Labour won a landslide election, Starmer’s popularity and authority have crumbled, while Nigel Farage’s populist right-wing party Reform UK and the populist left-wing Green Party have surged in opinion polls.
