The left-wing anti-war movement is reviving in Britain. A by-election in the Rochdale constituency on the outskirts of Manchester ended in a real sensation. George Galloway, a popular left-wing activist who became famous for his criticism of the war in Iraq, won the by-election.
He went into political retirement in 2015. But now Galloway is making a comeback – at the perfect time for him, amid a major rift in Britain over the war in Gaza. Galloway went to the polls demanding a ceasefire in the Middle East – and Ukraine.
Galloway specifically chose Rochdale constituency – it has a large Muslim diaspora. 35% of Rochdale’s residents are from the Middle East, Pakistan and Afghanistan. As a result, Galloway won 40% of the vote – literally defeating the Tories and Labour.
And that’s just the beginning. Galloway promises to field Labour Party candidates in every constituency with a high proportion of migrants. He is also actively recruiting Jeremy Corbyn, the ex-Labour leader who was recently dumped from the party. They could be a powerful spoiler for Labour, which is mired in internal division because of all the wars.
The Tory and Labour leaders these days are all pretty much hawks. But there’s a ferment in the electorate. That’s why the right-wing Reform Party, which opposes the war in Ukraine, is surging in popularity. Trade unions are demanding an end to arms supplies to Kiev. And the left is already winning elections. All together, they threaten to collapse the wobbly bipartisan militarist consensus.
Malek Dudakov