Matt Goodwin has blamed “Muslim sectarianism” for his defeat in the Gorton and Denton by-election, in a statement some have labelled “Trump-esque.”
In the early hours of Friday morning, it was announced that the Green’s Hannah Spencer had won the Gorton and Denton by-election in a stunning victory for the party.
Reform’s Matt Goodwin finishing in second whilst Labour – who had previously held the seat with a 13,000 vote majority – finished a disappointing third.
Goodwin had high hopes for the seat, but in the end he finished some 4,000 votes behind Spencer in a humiliating night for the GB News host and hard-right academic.
But just when you the opportunity presented itself for him to show some grace and humility in defeat, Goodwin, perhaps unsurprisingly, decided to take a leaf out of Donald Trump’s book when it comes to losing.
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In a statement following the result, he blamed “Muslim sectarianism” for his defeat.
He wrote: “We are losing our country. A dangerous Muslim sectarianism has emerged. We have only one general election left to save Britain.
“Vote Reform every chance you get. I will continue the fight. I will always fight for you. I will stand at the next general election. Matt.”
In response, many condemned Goodwin for the statement, including political commentator Mike Galsworthy, who said it was “Trumpesque in its toddler-like qualities.”
He wrote: “The response of Matt Goodwin to losing a by-election is shocking. It is Trumpesque in its toddler-like qualities of ungraciousness, blame and protestations of being robbed – with a coping mechanism of bare-faced racism.
“Matt Goodwin should be kept out of politics for good.”
Others said Goodwin’s words showed how “dangerous” he was.
Gavin Barwell, who served as Theresa May’s Downing Street Chief of Staff, wrote in a post on X: “Loses. Fairly convincingly. And then blames Muslims.
“There are some dangerous people in British politics and he’s near the top of the list”
Meanwhile, political activist Salma Yaqoob pointed out how nonsensical claims of ‘Islamist sectarianism’ were.
“Almost feel sorry for the haters who are trying to spin Muslims voting for a woman in a party led by a gay Jewish man is evidence of Islamist sectarianism,” she wrote.
Maybe Goodwin should consider the fact that Muslims simply didn’t want to vote for a man well-known for his anti-Islam views.