There was controversy on the eve of the Gorton and Denton by-election after Labour were accused of inventing a tactical voting group for a campaign leaflet.
Today (Thursday 26) voters have gone to the polls in the Greater Manchester constituency to vote for their new MP following the resignation of Labour’s Andrew Gwynne.
The vote seems to be a three-way race between the Greens, Reform and Labour, with the vote expected to be close to call if the latest poll is anything to go by.
But the day before the polls opened, Labour have found themselves at the centre of controversy over a campaign leaflet put through constituents’ doors.
The leaflet, which says it is promoted on behalf of Labour candidate Angeliki Stogia, features the logo that reads Tactical Choice.
The leaflet goes on to say: “The Tactical Choice says Vote Labour. Based on a new prediction made in the last 24 hours we are recommending voting Labour.”
However, it doesn’t appear that any organisation called ‘Tactical Choice’ exists, the HuffPost reports.
The Green Party have accused Labour of making up “an entirely fictitious organisation” in a “final throw of desperation.”
In a statement to the HuffPost, a Labour campaign spokesman did not deny claims that Tactical Choice appeared to have been invented by the party.
He said: “The Greens have been pumping out fake news and deploying dirty tactics for weeks. We’ll take no lectures from them.”
Last week, two of the UK’s most renowned tactical voting sites declared that the best way to block a victory for Reform in the Gorton and Denton by-election is for left-leaning voters to give their backing to the Green Party.