Nigel Farage has branded the Gorton and Denton parliamentary by-election an exercise in “sectarian voting and cheating.”
The Reform UK leader made the remarks after the far-left Green Party swept to victory in the seat, following a campaign that heavily courted Muslim voters. Labour, which had been defending the seat, slumped to third as its vote share collapsed, while Reform surged into second place. The main opposition Conservative Party won just 1.9% of the vote.
Independent observers had earlier reported “concerningly high levels” of so-called family voting—where two voters confer, or one directs the other inside the polling booth, breaching the secrecy of the ballot. The practice is illegal under British election rules.
Democracy Volunteers, a non-partisan watchdog, said it had witnessed the practice in 15 of the 22 polling stations visited. In total, it recorded 32 cases, including nine at a single polling station. Of 545 voters observed, the group estimated that 12% were either involved in or affected by the practice.
Farage said the claims raised “serious questions” about the integrity of the vote in “predominantly Muslim areas.”
The chairman of Reform UK has now signalled that the party will report concerns around family voting to the police. Speaking on TalkTV, Dr David Bull said he had spoken to Mr Farage and that the party would not “rush into” its next move.
He said: “Would it have changed the outcome? My personal feeling is probably not. Should we report it to the police? Yes, because if it’s electoral fraud, absolutely.”
The Green Party last week distributed campaign material in Urdu showing its candidate wearing a keffiyeh and urging Muslim voters to “punish Labour for Gaza.” The leaflets showed Hannah Spencer standing in front of a mosque. Both Labour and Reform criticised the Greens for trading on sectarian politics by pushing a pro-Palestinian agenda.
Reform candidate Matt Goodwin reacted to the result with a stark warning:
We are losing our country. A dangerous Muslim sectarianism has emerged. We have only one general election left to save Britain. Vote Reform every chance you get. I will continue the fight. I will always fight for you. I will stand at the next general election.
The result is yet another blow for Keir Starmer, whose short premiership has been dogged by scandals and policy u-turns. The loss of what was once considered a safe Labour seat is likely to intensify calls within the party for his resignation.
There were also immediate signs of wider political and economic fallout. UK government borrowing costs rose in early trading after the Green victory, with the 10-year gilt yield rising to 4.29% and the 30-year gilt yield to 5.09% per cent amid concerns that the result could strengthen pressure on Labour to shift leftwards on spending and tax.
