Keir Starmer on Monday announced his resignation as UK prime minister. Former Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham is seen as the frontrunner for succession to the top post.
Starmer became the sixth UK PM in the last decade to have resigned before their term ended. Burnham has confirmed that he will run to succeed Keir Starmer as Labour leader and UK prime minister.
Earlier last week, Burnham won the crucial Makerfield by-election by a huge majority.
Burnham defeated the Reform UK candidate, Robert Kenyon, by 9,231 votes, and the new hardline Restore Britain party came a distant third.
Leadership bid begins
Burnham has previously run for the leadership twice, losing out to Ed Miliband and later Jeremy Corbyn.
Burnham is seen as Keir Starmer’s biggest rival in the Labour Party. The 56-year-old politician had made it clear that he would challenge the prime minister if he managed to woo the voters in Makerfield.
“His decision marks the beginning of a transition, and it is important that this process is conducted in an orderly and responsible way. I will put myself forward as part of this process," Burnham said, reacting to Starmer's resignation.
Who is Andy Burnham?
Andrew Murray Burnham was born on 7 January 1970. He was the Mayor of Greater Manchester from 2017 to 2026 and a Member of Parliament (MP).
A member of Labour Co-op, he previously served as the MP for Leigh from 2001 until 2017. During his first parliamentary career, he held several Cabinet positions, lastly as Secretary of State for Health from 2009 to 2010.
Political profile
Burnham is associated with the soft left of the Labour Party. He identifies politically as a socialist and has often been cited as the most popular senior Labour figure.
He joined the Labour Party aged 15 and subsequently attended Cambridge University.
Burnham earned the "King of the North" moniker for his role campaigning to secure more furlough funding for Northern communities during the COVID-19 pandemic. He was dubbed King of the North by both the media and Northerners.
