Burnham is considered by numerous Labour MPs as the party’s most promising option for revival after the poor showing in the May local elections.

Voters in the Greater Manchester seat of Makerfield are casting their ballots today in a crucial by-election that will decide their next Member of Parliament — and potentially the future prime minister of the UK.

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Polling stations in Makerfield are open from 7 am until 10 pm this Thursday, with vote counting scheduled to commence once the polls close.

This by-election arose after the previous Makerfield MP, Josh Simons, resigned, enabling Andy Burnham, the Manchester mayor, to launch a campaign to challenge the British Prime Minister Keir Starmer.

Simons stepped down following Labour’s disastrous results in the local elections held in May, which increased pressure on Starmer and ignited calls for his resignation.

In an interview with the BBC, Simons described it as the “most challenging decision” of his life but one that presented an “opportunity too significant to overlook.”

“The party was headed for a leadership contest split among various factions, lacking hope or momentum for change,” he explained.

A considerable number of Labour MPs view Burnham as the strongest candidate to lead the party’s recovery after the May electoral setback, although he faces formidable opposition from the right wing in Thursday’s contest.

Nigel Farage’s Reform UK and Rupert Lowe’s Restore Britain are banking on their immigration policies to attract local voters.

Shortly after the polls opened, Farage uploaded a video to social networks framing the choice as between Reform UK’s Robert Kenyon and “open borders Andy Burnham.”

Burnham’s positions regarding the EU and Brexit have drawn notable scrutiny in the lead-up to the Makerfield poll.

While Burnham previously advocated for the UK’s readmission to the EU—a subject that has sparked intense debate lately—he has since tempered those statements.

“Brexit has caused harm,” he admitted in May. “However, I also believe rewinding those debates now would be the worst course of action.”