LONDON, May 20 (Reuters) – An election for a seat in Britain’s parliament, set to be contested by possible Labour Party leadership candidate Andy Burnham, will take place on June 18, the local council in northern England said in a notice on Wednesday.
Burnham, seen as a challenger to embattled Prime Minister Keir Starmer, would need to win the Makerfield seat near Manchester before launching any formal leadership challenge.
He faces stiff opposition from the populist Reform UK party, led by Nigel Farage.
Starmer’s Labour Party performed poorly in May local elections, triggering calls from a significant bloc of his lawmakers for him to quit.
Many of those are looking to Burnham, currently Mayor of Greater Manchester and an advocate of a more left-wing approach, to revive the party’s fortunes.
Another possible candidate is former health minister Wes Streeting, who quit saying he had lost confidence in the prime minister.
(Reporting by William James, Editing by Sam Tabahriti)
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