George Galloway has been re-elected to Parliament after a resounding win in the Rochdale by-election, after a campaign blighted by divisive politics.
The controversial candidate, who stood for the Workers Party of Britain, secured 12,335 votes, a majority of 5,697, beating independent David Anthony Tully who came second with 6,638 votes.
Galloway published campaign literature which said a Galloway victory would represent an opportunity to kick Keir Starmer – “a supporter of Israel” – out of office.
The controversial MP became favourite after Labour’s candidate, Azhar Ali, claimed Israel had deliberately allowed the October 7 attacks to go ahead.
Galloway, a former Labour MP and Celebrity Big Brother contestant, made the issue of the Israel-Hamas conflict in Gaza a focus of his campaign, saying in his victory speech: “Keir Starmer, this is for Gaza.
“You have paid and you will pay a high price for the role you have played in enabling, encouraging and covering for the catastrophe presently going on in occupied Palestine in the Gaza Strip,” he said.
Galloway achieved just under 40 per cent of a low turnout by-election, following a chaotic campaign, and was interrupted by a heckler accusing him of climate change denial during his address. Turnout was 39.7 per cent.
It was a bad night for the major parties with Paul Ellison in the third place, securing 3,731 votes for the Conservatives, and Azhar Ali – who the Labour Party withdrew their support for – getting just 2,402 votes.
Iain Donaldson, for the Liberal Democrats, came shortly behind at 2,164, and the remaing six – consisting of three independents, the Greens, the Monster Raving Loony Party and disgraced former Labour MP Simon Danczuk standing for Reform UK – all achieved less than 2,000 votes.
It comes after the Conservatives suffered twin defeats in the Wellingborough and Kingswood by-elections earlier this month, with new Labour MPs Gen Kitchen and former Lewisham mayor Damian Egan elected in both seats.
Voters went to the polls in the Greater Manchester constituency of Rochdale after the death of longstanding Labour MP Tony Lloyd from blood cancer earlier this year.
The contest sparked controversy when Labour withdrew its support for candidate Azhar Ali after leaked comments, which were widely alleged to be antisemitic, emerged.
Disgraced ex-Labour MP Simon Danczuk, who was barred from the party in 2017 for sending inappropriate messages to a 17-year-old girl, stood for Nigel Farage-linked Reform UK, achieving 1,968 votes.
Reform UK’s leader Richard Tice claimed Danczuk, had received a death threat during the campaign and said his party’s campaign team had been subject to “daily intimidation and slurs”. He also questioned the validity of the postal ballots returned during the contest.
A Labour spokesperson said: “We deeply regret that the Labour party was unable to field a candidate in this by-election and apologise to the people of Rochdale.
“George Galloway only won because Labour did not stand. Rochdale deserved the chance to vote for an MP that would bring communities together and deliver for working people.
“George Galloway is only interested in stoking fear and division. As an MP he will be a damaging force in our communities and public life.”
The spokesperson said the Labour Party would “quickly” select a new candidate to fight the general election, in a bid to deliver the “representation and fresh start that Rochdale deserves”.
A spokesperson for the charity Campaign Against Antisemitism (CAA) said: “George Galloway has an atrocious record of baiting the Jewish community.”
They added: “Given his historic inflammatory rhetoric and the current situation faced by the Jewish community in this country, we are extremely concerned by how he may use the platform of the House of Commons in the remaining months of this Parliament.”
A further by-election test could be on the cards for Prime Minister Rishi Sunak in Blackpool South after former Tory MP Scott Benton lost his appeal against a 35-day suspension from the House of Commons.