Who is Andy Burnham, likely Starmer successor as British prime minister?

International Who is Andy Burnham, likely Starmer successor as British prime minister? Comments: by Ryan Mancini - 06/22/26 12:42 PM ET Comments: Link copied by Ryan Mancini - 06/22/26 12:42 PM ET Comments: Link copied

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Labour Party member Andy Burnham is likely to become the next British prime minister after incumbent Keir Starmer on Monday announced that he will resign once there is a new leader in place.

Starmer’s resignation could have led to a divisive contest among Labour Party lawmakers, but Burnham, 56, quickly won the support of former Health Minister Wes Streeting, previously a potential contender for the seat of power on Downing Street, Reuters reported. Burnham is on track to become Britain’s seventh leader in 10 years.

Here’s what to know about Burnham.

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Labour Party’s ‘soft left’

Burnham is seen as being part of the Labour Party’s “soft left,” more to the political left than Starmer. His political priorities vary from improving vocational education and offering better jobs for young people, bringing an “end to trickle down economics” and decentralizing government power in London to allow local government to take more direct control of utilities and transportation.

Critics have argued that his popular approach while serving as Greater Manchester’s mayor might not translate to being the prime minister, and that some of his politics are vague. Some to the left of Burnham, including journalist and commentator Owen Jones, are critical of Burnham’s support for Israel and accuse his calls for decentralization of being “disconcertingly open to interpretation.”

Early history

Burnham was born in the village of Aintree, a suburb of Liverpool, and is the son of a British telecom engineer and a receptionist. Burnham joined the Labour Party as a teenager before attending Cambridge University.

Election to Parliament

He was elected to Parliament in 2001 and served for nearly two decades. During that time, he also served as a junior minister under former Prime Minister Tony Blair from 2005 to 2007, and in former Prime Minister Gordon Brown’s Cabinet from 2007 to 2010.

Election as Manchester mayor

He twice ran to be the Labour Party leader, and chose to run to become Manchester’s mayor following his second loss. Manchester saw development grow as new skyscrapers towered over sites that previously birthed the Industrial Revolution. Constituents saw him as humble, typically seen wearing a T-shirt, while also praising his enduring support for the city.

As mayor, Burnham inherited the “Game of Thrones”-inspired nickname “King of the North” for defending the region during the COVID-19 pandemic. He challenged the restrictions former Prime Minister Boris Johnson put in place at the time, calling his handling of the crisis “London-centric.”

Burnham called for more financial support to help closed businesses and workers hit hard by the pandemic. He sought 90 million pounds ($117 million) to help Manchester residents get through the winter, but was willing to accept as little as 65 million pounds. The former mayor accused Johnson’s government of leaving the negotiating table.

“It cannot be right to close people’s place of work, to shut somebody’s business, without giving them proper support,” Burnham said in October 2020. “It’s brutal to be honest, isn’t it. This is no way to run the country in a national crisis.”

Burnham’s outsider image and appearance of having stood up to London garnered a wealth of support. He won a third term as Manchester’s mayor in 2024, defeating the Reform Party candidate handily.

Burnham campaigned on bringing “Manchesterism” to British politics, a term he has defined as putting people and place before the party.

“What we’ve built in Greater Manchester needs to go national,” Burnham said while campaigning to be party leader. “I know what it is to turn places around.”

The Associated Press contributed.

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