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Citizens are casting their votes in the Makerfield area of Greater Manchester, UK, today during a crucial by-election to choose their new Member of Parliament — and potentially Britain’s next prime minister.

Voting booths in Makerfield are available from 7 a.m. until 10 p.m. on Thursday, with the tallying of votes scheduled to occur once the voting period ends.

The by-election occurred following the resignation of the previous Makerfield MP, Josh Simons, in order to enable Andy Burnham, the mayor of Manchester, to contest the position of British Prime Minister, Keir Starmer.

Simons took the decision after Labour’s poor performance in the local elections in May, which increased pressure on Starmer and sparked demands for him to resign.

Speaking with the BBC at that time, Simons mentioned it was the “most challenging decision” he had ever made, yet “too significant an opportunity to pass up.”

“We were moving towards a leadership election with the Labour Party divided into various groups, and there was no hope, no energy that things would improve,” he stated.

Many Labour MPs view Burnham as the party’s most promising path to recovery after the May local elections, yet he will encounter strong opposition from the right during Thursday’s vote.

Nigel Farage’s Reform UK and Rupert Lowe’s Restore Britain parties are hoping their emphasis on addressing immigration will be sufficient to gain support from residents.

Not long after voting began, Farage shared a video on social media where he framed the election as a decision between Reform candidate Robert Kenyon and “open borders Andy Burnham”.

Burnham’s position regarding the EU and Brexit has drawn significant focus in the lead-up to the Makerfield election.

Burnham had earlier advocated for the UK to re-enter the group, a concept that has sparked intense discussion recently, although he has now moved away from those statements.

Imo, Brexit has been harmful,” he stated in May. “However, I also think that the last thing we need to do at this moment is revisit those debates.