Labour posted another convincing special-election victory — easily retaining an open seat in West Lancashire — in a boost for Keir Starmer’s efforts to lead his party back to power after almost 13 years in opposition.
(Bloomberg) — Labour posted another convincing special-election victory — easily retaining an open seat in West Lancashire — in a boost for Keir Starmer’s efforts to lead his party back to power after almost 13 years in opposition.
Labour candidate Ashley Dalton won 62% of the vote in the by-election Thursday, according to a tally released by the West Lancashire Borough Council. That represents a 10 percentage-point swing in the opposition’s favor compared with the most recent general election in 2019.
The Conservative candidate, Mike Prendergast, came in second with 25% of the vote. While Labour has held the seat since 1992, the result nevertheless demonstrates the party’s continued momentum ahead of the next general election, which must be held by January 2025.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s Tories have been trailing Labour by around 20 points in national polls amid industrial disputes, ministerial scandals and a squeeze on living standards. The newly appointment Conservative Party chairman, Greg Hands, hinted earlier this week that the next election would happen in the second half of 2024, suggesting that Sunak intends to maximize his time in office before facing voters.
Dalton said her victory showed that the Conservatives, which took power in May 2010, no longer had a mandate to govern.
“Move out of the way,” she said, according to the Press Association. “Let Labour take over and it’s time for a general election.”
The West Lancashire vote was triggered by Labour MP Rosie Cooper’s decision to step down in September and become chair of a local National Health Service trust. Cooper, a long-serving backbencher who had held the seat since 2005, was the target of a far-right murder plot in 2017 and said in her resignation letter that events had “taken their toll.”
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Labour’s record at the ballot box has improved since then-Prime Minister Boris Johnson led the Conservatives to their biggest victory in more than three decades in the last vote. That includes special election wins in Stretford and Urmston and Chester in December, which showed the opposition party winning by wider margins.
Turnout in the vote Thursday was around 32%, compared with 72% in 2019.
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