Andy Burnham has been elected the new leader of Britain’s Labour Party. He is due to succeed Keir Starmer as prime minister on July 20.
In his first speech after winning, Burnham thanked his predecessor and said that under Starmer, Labour had gone “from its greatest defeat to a great victory.”
Burnham is 56. From May 2017 until June 2026, he led Greater Manchester as the region’s first directly elected mayor. His record in office, including improvements to the urban environment and support for residents during the COVID-19 pandemic, earned him the nickname “King of the North” in the British media.
Burnham previously sought the Labour leadership in 2015 but lost the party election to Jeremy Corbyn.
Keir Starmer succeeded Corbyn as party leader in 2020. Under his leadership, Labour won the 2024 general election, after which Starmer formed the government.
By July 2026, approval ratings for the prime minister and his party had declined markedly. Labour suffered defeats in several local elections, while internal divisions deepened. Starmer’s critics demanded that he relinquish both the party leadership and the premiership.
Starmer announced his resignation on June 22.
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