Labour's Jackie Rawstron has won the Hyndburn by-election with 318 votes, as Reform UK and Restore Britain together secured 56% of the ballots cast in the Huncoat ward contest.
Reform UK finished second on 275 votes, with Restore Britain third on 257, while the Conservatives took 74 votes. The seat fell vacant following the death of long-serving Labour representative Dave Parkins.
Campaign controversy
The campaign drew controversy after Reform UK county councillor Joel Tetlow called the visually impaired candidate a "Stevie Wonder lookalike" online, prompting condemnation. Some of Rawstron's own social media posts were later made public, allegedly of a similar nature.
Rawstron was suspended by the Labour party during the campaign for an investigation into those posts, but could not be removed as a candidate because the suspension came after she had been nominated.
Party reactions
Restore Britain leader Rupert Lowe took to X after his party secured 28% of the vote to call the result "astonishing" and said: "we are going to take our country back."
In a statement Reform UK said: "The results in Hyndburn are clear: a vote for anyone other than Reform UK in Lancashire is a vote to keep Labour."
Councillor Munsif Dad, Labour leader of Hyndburn Borough Council, said: "Reform and Restore can make plenty of noise, but they still haven't won this by-election, voters have seen through the slogans and chosen to reject them."
Wigan victory
Labour also secured a by-election victory in Wigan, winning the Hindley Green contest following the death of veteran councillor Bob Brierley. Labour candidate John Vickers won with 1,201 votes, ahead of Reform UK's Bonnie Clarke on 887 votes.
The result marked Labour's first electoral success in Wigan this year after the party lost all 25 seats contested in May's local elections. The Hindley Green ward, located entirely within the Makerfield parliamentary constituency, was seen as a test of support for Prime Minister Andy Burnham in his own political backyard. The by-election came months after Reform dominated May's elections, winning 24 of the 25 contested seats across the borough.
