The Gorton and Denton by-election was supposedly a three-horse race, but on polling day the Green Party stormed to victory by a vast margin. It was a devastating defeat for Labour, which was pushed into third place behind Reform UK. Sir Keir Starmer now faces intense pressure, while his party must battle a threat from the left as well as the right. Does this historic result – the first ever by-election triumph for the Greens – signal the end of the two-party system? And where does it leave Reform?

Host Lucy Fisher is joined by FT political correspondent Anna Gross, northern England correspondent Jennifer Williams, and political editor George Parker.

Follow: Lucy @LOS_Fisher and @lucyfisher.ft.com; George @georgewparker; Jennifer @JenWilliams_FT; Anna @AnnaSophieGross

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Political Fix is presented by Lucy Fisher. This episode was produced by Fiona Symon and Mischa Frankl-Duval. Original music and mix by Breen Turner. The executive producer is Manuela Saragosa. The FT’s head of audio is Cheryl Brumley.

Our email address is politicalfix@ft.com

Clip from BBC

Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com

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