Green Party Stunning Victory Deals Major Blow to UK Prime Minister Starmer

Britain's Green Party scored a shocking electoral win over Prime Minister Keir Starmer's Labour Party in a Manchester-area special election, dealing a severe blow to his leadership. The defeat has Starmer's political future in question as his party finished third behind both the Greens and the hard-right Reform UK party.

LONDON — A stunning electoral triumph by Britain’s Green Party has delivered a crushing defeat to Prime Minister Keir Starmer, sparking serious doubts about his political survival as Labour leader.

In a dramatic reversal of fortunes, Starmer’s center-left Labour Party suffered a humiliating loss in what was once considered a safe seat in northern England, placing third behind both the environmentalist Greens and the far-right Reform UK movement — barely 20 months after Labour’s overwhelming general election victory.

The special election held Thursday in Greater Manchester’s Gorton and Denton district represents just one parliamentary seat among 650 total, yet it offers a telling preview of Britain’s increasingly fractured political landscape with potentially sweeping implications.

The outcome delivers another devastating setback to Starmer, whose tenure has lurched from one crisis to another and nearly collapsed entirely just weeks ago.

Following Labour’s July 2024 electoral triumph, Starmer has failed to fulfill campaign promises of economic expansion, public service improvements, and cost-of-living relief. His administration has been plagued by policy reversals and controversial decisions regarding welfare reductions and other unpopular measures.

With the next nationwide vote not required until 2029, Starmer’s primary threat emerges from his own party ranks. British parliamentary rules allow the ruling party to replace its prime minister without calling new elections.

Just three weeks prior, such a change appeared imminent when fallout from newly released Jeffrey Epstein documents in America triggered widespread party rebellion.

Multiple Labour members of parliament and the party’s Scottish leadership demanded Starmer’s resignation, his top staff members departed, and his government appeared on the verge of collapse.

Though Starmer pledged to remain and received public support from potential successors, his already fragile position has deteriorated further, with upcoming May 7 local elections expected to bring additional Labour losses.

Labour MP Jon Trickett declared Friday that Starmer should “look in the mirror and make a decision about his own personal future.”

Green Party leader Zack Polanski proclaimed the results demonstrate that “Labour’s electoral stranglehold is over.”

For the past century, British national politics has been controlled by two major forces: the Conservative Party on the right and Labour on the left. Unlike numerous European nations, Britain lacks proportional representation, historically preventing smaller parties from gaining significant influence.

However, this dynamic is shifting dramatically. Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland maintain distinct regional parties, while emerging movements on both political extremes are capturing growing voter support.

Reform UK, the newest organization led by anti-immigration activist Nigel Farage, holds merely eight parliamentary seats yet has consistently led public opinion surveys for months, surpassing both Labour and Conservative support.

The Green Party, under new leadership from “eco-populist” Polanski, has expanded its platform beyond environmental issues to address cost-of-living concerns, drug legalization, and Palestinian solidarity, presenting itself as a left-liberal alternative to Labour.

The newly elected representative, Hannah Spencer, is a 34-year-old plumber who used her victory address to apologize to customers for canceling work appointments to begin her parliamentary duties.

Spencer addressed concerns that traditionally belong to Labour’s core message: living costs, deteriorating public services, and diminished prospects in former manufacturing regions that historically supported Labour candidates.

“For people here in Gorton and Denton who feel left behind and isolated: I see you and I will fight for you,” Spencer stated.

The election results underscore Labour’s difficult position facing opposition from multiple directions.

Thursday’s contest occurred in a demographically diverse constituency containing traditional working-class communities — formerly Labour strongholds now leaning toward Reform — alongside substantial student and Muslim populations. Many feel alienated by Labour’s centrist pivot under Starmer and the government’s perceived reluctance to condemn Israel’s military actions against Hamas in Gaza — creating opportunities for Green Party growth.

University of Manchester political science professor Rob Ford characterized the outcome as “the nightmare scenario for the incumbent government.”

“They have fallen into the electoral Valley of Death,” Ford posted on social media. “Rejected in the center. Rejected on the right. And now rejected on the left.”

Following the defeat, numerous Labour voices demanded strategic changes, arguing that attempts to attract “Reform-curious” voters through immigration restrictions had alienated liberal supporters.

“If the Labour Party thinks it can win an election by moving on to the territory which has been occupied by Mr. Farage and his party, they’ve made a big mistake,” Trickett told Times Radio. He said the party wrongly assumed “that the progressive voters had nowhere else to go.”

Starmer has been damaged by scandals involving Jeffrey Epstein, despite never meeting the disgraced financier and having no connection to his crimes.

The recent leadership crisis stemmed from revelations about convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein’s relationship with Peter Mandelson, the experienced Labour politician Starmer appointed in 2024 as UK ambassador to the United States.

Law enforcement is examining emails suggesting Mandelson shared classified government information with Epstein fifteen years ago. Mandelson was arrested and questioned this week before being released on bail, though he faces no sexual misconduct allegations.

Starmer dismissed Mandelson in September 2025 after evidence showed the ambassador maintained contact with Epstein following the financier’s 2008 conviction for sex crimes involving a minor. Recent revelations have intensified Labour lawmakers’ criticism of Starmer’s judgment in selecting Mandelson for the Washington position.

On Friday, Starmer acknowledged the disappointing results but promised to “keep on fighting.”

“Incumbent governments quite often get results like that mid-term, but I do understand that voters are frustrated,” he said. “They’re impatient for change.”