Burnham, the Greater Manchester mayor nicknamed "King of the North", won the contest in Makerfield in northwest England with 54.8 percent of the vote, beating the candidate for Nigel Farage's populist Reform UK party, on 34.5 percent.

Labour’s Andy Burnham has won a special election for a seat in Parliament, positioning him to challenge Prime Minister Keir Starmer.

Greater Manchester mayor's victory in Makerfield clears path for bid to unseat Starmer as prime minister.