Labour face more pressure over Gaza conflict after George Galloway win, says Sir John Curtice

Labour MPs in constituencies with large Muslim populations are likely to put “pressure” on the party leadership over its stance on Gaza following George Galloway’s by-election win, a leading polling expert said on Friday.

Sir John Curtice, professor of politics at Strathclyde University, said the Rochdale poll was not “typical” but showed that Mr Galloway’s ability to appeal to Muslim voters was a “wider issue” for Labour.

Independent candidates angry at Sir Keir Starmer’s response to Gaza have already vowed to stand against Labour in constituencies across the capital, including in shadow health secretary Wes Streeting’s Ilford North seat and against shadow business minister Rushanara Ali in Bethnal Green.

“We know that there is tension within the Labour Party including among its MPs about Sir Keir Starmer’s relative reticence to criticise Israel’s intervention and the scale and character of that intervention,” Sir John told LBC.

“And while it’s true that most Labour MPs who represent large Muslim populations, and many of them do also sit on large majorities and probably will be able to withstand a challenge from independent candidates who are likely to have the same kind of appeal as Mr Galloway, that is something that they will want to avoid so I think you can expect the pressure on Sir Keir Starmer to be increased from at least a section of the parliamentary Labour Party.”

Labour was forced to drop its Rochdale election candidate, Azhar Ali, just weeks before the by-election after a recording emerged of him suggesting that Israel had been complicit in the October 7 Hamas massacre.

George Galloway swept to victory in Rochdale (AFP via Getty Images)

Mr Galloway, the Workers Party of Britain leader, swept up almost 40 per cent of the vote, beating independent David Tully in second with Conservative Paul Ellison a distant third.

Mr Ali, who was still listed as the Labour candidate on the ballot paper, came fourth with less than eight per cent of the vote.

Mr Galloway has previously hinted that he will run against Sadiq Khan in the London Mayoral race this year.

His team this morning had still not officially ruled out a bid for City Hall, but in his victory speech he vowed to stand up for Rochdale, including holding local councillors to account in May.

Mr Galloway’s campaign in Greater Manchester was led by London councillor James Giles.

The leader of Kingston Independent Residents Group sparked outrage in December when he sent a letter to every councillor in the country demanding they sign a Gaza ceasefire declaration and suggesting he would name and shame those who did not.

Mr Galloway, a former Labour MP who was kicked out of the party 20 years ago over the Iraq War, said: “I want to tell Mr Starmer above all, that the plates have shifted tonight.

“Beginning here in the North West, in the West Midlands, in London, from Ilford to Bethnal Green and Bow, Labour is on notice that they have lost the confidence of millions of their voters who loyally and traditionally voted for them, generation after generation.”

In 2005 Mr Galloway stood for the Respect Party and beat Labour in the east London seat of Bethnal Green and Bow.

He won the Bradford West by-election seven year later.