George Galloway beaten by Labour in Rochdale seat just four months after shock by-election win
5 July 2024
Veteran left-winger George Galloway has lost the Rochdale constituency just four months after winning the seat in a shock by-election victory.
The leader of the Workers Party did not attend the count at Rochdale Leisure Centre to hear the General Election result.
After securing 11,587 votes, Mr Galloway was beaten by Labour’s Paul Waugh, a political journalist, who won with 13,027 votes. Reform UK's Michael Howard came third, with 6,773 votes.
Following defeat, Mr Galloway posted on X: "I thank the people of Rochdale who gave me 54 sitting days in the last parliament as their MP.
"Big thanks to my agent, my campaign team and the thousands who voted for me today.
"We took the government party to within 1500 votes and serve notice on Labour that we are here to stay in Rochdale.
"We will field a full slate of council candidates, establish a full-time office there, campaign to re-open the Maternity Ward and A&E, and keep up the pressure on Labour in the town."
The former Labour and Respect member secured a convincing victory in Rochdale in February after winning more than 6,000 votes.
He gained almost 40% of the vote in a contest that was centred around the Gaza war after Labour withdrew support for its candidate Azhar Ali over remarks widely alleged to be antisemitic.
After his victory earlier this year, Mr Galloway said: "Keir Starmer and Rishi Sunak are two cheeks of the same backside and they both got well and truly spanked."
Mr Galloway was a Labour MP until 2003, before sitting in the Commons as an independent and Respect Party MP for three constituencies between 2003 and 2015.
Palestine has been a major theme of Mr Galloway's political career, throughout which he has opposed British and US foreign policies.
George Galloway loses Rochdale seat to Labour's Paul Waugh
George Galloway has lost the Rochdale constituency just 54 days after winning the seat in a shock by-election.
The leader of the Workers Party has been removed from parliament after conceding his seat to Labour candidate Paul Waugh by 1,400 votes.
George Galloway chose not to attend the count to hear the General Election result at Rochdale Leisure Centre.
Paul Waugh won the most votes for the constituency with 13,027, whilst Galloway took 11,600.
After that came Reform UK with the third highest number of votes, ahead of the Conservatives.
After defeat Mr Galloway took to X, formerly Twitter, to say: "I thank the people of Rochdale who gave me 54 sitting days in the last parliament as their MP.
"Big thanks to my agent, my campaign team and the thousands who voted for me today.
"We took the government party to within 1500 votes and serve notice on Labour that we are here to stay in Rochdale.
"We will field a full slate of council candidates, establish a full-time office there, campaign to re-open the Maternity Ward and A&E, and keep up the pressure on Labour in the town."
Former Labour and Respect member, Mr Galloway, swept to victory in Rochdale in February gaining almost 40% of the vote in a contest mired in chaos and controversy and dominated by the Gaza war.
Labour have swept across constituencies and gained territory around the country by winning parliamentary seats they haven't held since 2019.
Paul Waugh began his victory speech thanking George for his service, which was followed by shouts and heckles from the crowd.
Waugh said: "I know many of you have voted Labour here for the very first time. I'll do everything I can to repay that trust that every Labour voter has placed in me.
"And for those who didn't vote for me, I will work tirelessly on your behalf too."
He added: "Tonight's result's, here and across the country, show that no vote for any party can ever be taken for granted.
"They have to be earnt."
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