A by-election in the parliamentary seat of Makerfield is being held after the resignation of Josh Simons.
Labour currently holds a majority of 5,399 in Makerfield, with Reform in second, with 18% of the vote.
But in Wigan, which includes part of Makerfield, Labour lost all 22 of its councillors in the local election, with Reform picking up 24 of the 25 seats up for grabs.
In the eight Makerfield wards that voted in the local election, Reform secured 50% of the vote while Labour got 23%.
The constituency’s former MP stood down to allow the Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham to stand for his seat and return to Westminster.
Josh Simons said: “This was not an easy thing to do, and I wouldn’t have done it unless I really, really believed, at the end of the day, that this was in the best interests of the Labour Party, my community, and most importantly, the country.”
But with other parties keen to block his return, Mr Burnham faces a difficult fight to win over the people of the Makerfield constituency.
The full list of by-election candidates is available on our website: https://www.itv.com/news/granada/2026-05-20/all-the-candidates-announced-for-the-makerfield-by-election-so-far
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