graphic of vote share<\/a><\/figure>\n<\/gu-island><\/p>\n
One MP said Starmer \u201cisn\u2019t even close to getting it, unfortunately\u201d, while another said No 10 had not quite grappled with \u201cjust how unpopular we are: our own people hate us\u201d.<\/p>\n
Reform, meanwhile, was claiming the byelection was always a tough fight in such a mixed area that combined progressive students with traditional white working-class voters and a sizeable Muslim population. In light of that, the party\u2019s choice of candidate seemed to have been a mistake, after it picked Goodwin, an academic who refused to disown his claim that UK-born people from minority ethnic backgrounds were not necessarily British.<\/p>\n
Goodwin arrived at the count at 3.50am and in a brief huddle told journalists: \u201cI think that what you\u2019ve seen is the emergence of a dangerous sectarianism in British politics.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Greens are riding a very dangerous wave,\u201d he said. \u201cI\u2019m very concerned about the direction of the country, and I think many people are going to be watching this byelection and they\u2019re going to be feeling the same things that I am, which is deep concern about where Britain is heading.\u201d<\/p>\n
Nigel Farage\u2019s party also wasted no time in claiming the election was affected by \u201cfamily voting\u201d \u2013 where more than one person enters a voting booth, raising the risk of votes being influenced by pressure \u2013 after observers raised concerns that this appeared to be happening more than usual. They swiftly reported \u201celectoral fraud\u201d, saying it raised \u201cserious questions about the integrity of the democratic process in predominantly Muslim areas\u201d.<\/p>\n
Labour strategists are now left wondering how they will repair their fragmented coalition when votes are haemorraghing on the left in seats such as Gorton, and on the right in areas such as Runcorn where Reform was victorious last year.<\/p>\n
MPs were also taking different messages from the results, with some wanting a swing to the left and a \u201cmore Labour\u201d approach, plus a change of leader to Burnham or Angela Rayner. Mainstream Group, which is supportive of Burnham, said it wanted to see a \u201cfundamental reset\u201d, while Sharon Graham, the general secretary of the leftwing union Unite, had a blunt piece of advice: \u201cStop listening to your rich mates and start listening to everyday people.\u201d<\/p>\nNewly elected MP Hannah Spencer enjoys chips and curry sauce from Sue\u2019s chippy in her constituency.<\/span> Photograph: Christopher Thomond\/The Guardian<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nOthers were quick to say the problem was not switching left or right, but lack of action at dealing with the cost of living and promoting growth. Chris Curtis, a Labour MP from the party\u2019s \u201cgrowth group\u201d, said the result was a \u201cwake-up call that we as a party need to hear\u201d and there was a broken system that rewarded \u201cthe people gaming it and punishes the people grafting\u201d.<\/p>\n
One former No 10 aide said Labour still needed to look at the big picture of a national election, where it would be easier for Starmer to position his party as the only force to stop Reform \u2013 in contrast to a byelection where the stakes were lower. He said: \u201cOverall, Gorton and Caerphilly have proved there is a big constituency of people who want to prevent Farage gaining power at all costs.\u201d<\/p>\n
But another former Labour communications chief said it would be foolish to take any heart from the result: \u201cReform will weaponise all the divisions and only benefit from splits on the left. It\u2019s nothing but grim.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
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