Full Lineup Revealed for Makerfield By-Election

Fourteen contenders have been confirmed to compete in the Makerfield by-election, scheduled for Thursday, 18 June. The complete roster of candidates for the Greater Manchester constituency is presented below, arranged alphabetically by surname.

Jake Austin – Liberal Democrats A councillor from Stockport, Austin was born within the constituency and previously ran for the Greater Manchester mayoralty in 2024.

Count Binface – Count Binface Party

Andy Burnham – The Labour Party Serving as the region’s metropolitan mayor since 2017, Burnham is a former minister in the Labour government.

Dan Clarke – The Libertarian Party Clarvis acts as the North-West coordinator for the party. He previously stood as a candidate in the Gorton and Denton by-election, which also took place in Greater Manchester, back in February.

John Dyer – Independent

Ed Gemmell – Climate Party

Paul Gould – Independent

Alan ‘Howlin’ Laud Hope – The Official Monster Raving Loony Party Hope established this party in 1982 alongside 1960s pop star Screaming Lord Sutch at a pub, with the aim of introducing "frivolity to dull elections."

Robert Kenyon – Reform UK A self-employed plumber, Kenyon ran in this constituency during the 2024 general election, finishing second to Labour’s Josh Simons.

Robert Pownall – Independent

Rebecca Shepherd – Restore Britain A businesswoman, Shepherd holds the distinction of being the first candidate to be officially announced on Monday.

Sarah Wakefield – Green Party Wakefield, who serves as a councillor on Manchester City Council, was selected after the Greens' initial choice, Chris Kennedy, withdrew from the contest.

Peter Ward – Rejoin EU The party stated that "rejoining the EU has come back into the British political debate in a big way" and expressed their desire to "make a full contribution to this discussion."

Michael Winstanley – The Conservative Party Winstanley previously held the position of mayor of Wigan during the 2010/11 term.

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Source: BBC News Generated at: 2026-05-27 07:49:34 UTC