The polls have officially closed in the Gorton and Denton by-election. It follows a dramatic campaign, full of twists and turns.
Back in January, when the election was called, there was speculation that Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham would stand for the Labour Party in the seat- that did not happen. He was controversially blocked by Labour’s National Executive Committee from running, and instead Labour have chosen to field Manchester City councillor Angeliki Stogia as their candidate.
Reform picked Matt Goodwin as their candidate for this by-election race. He was born in St Albans, and currently has a Hertfordshire address. Notably, he was mocked at recent Manchester Evening News Hustings by Stogia, who addressed him by saying “Welcome to Manchester”. Goodwin has insisted that he is indeed a ‘Manchester’ candidate, referencing how his Dad’s side of the family are from “Lower Broughton, Salford”, and that his Grandma “ran the accommodation services for students at the University of Salford”.
The Green Party have fielded local plumber, and leader of their group on Trafford Council, Hannah Spencer as their candidate in Gorton and Denton. She has vowed to take on Reform in this by-election, describing her campaign as one of “hope versus hate”.
Currently, it is thought to be a very tight race between the Greens, Labour and Reform in Gorton and Denton. The results are expected to be published early on Friday morning.
Keep up to date with all the action through regular articles on the Roch Valley Radio website, as well as by following the live blog:
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Dancing to She’s Electric and waving banners from a bus, Labour make one final push to stop the unthinkable
