The declaration follows former Member of Parliament George Galloway’s announcement that he intended to stand in the Rochdale election “to teach Labour a lesson”.
The local council later confirmed the voting would take place on February 29. On Monday, a writ to hold a by-election in his seat of Rochdale was filed before parliament.
Following the revelation, Sir Tony’s family took to social media to express their support for Azhar Ali, the Labour candidate running the Labour group at Lancashire County Council.
They said that his “dedication to public service and commitment to improving the lives of working people make him the ideal choice to carry on the incredible legacy Tony leaves behind” .
They added, however, that “people with divisive politics should not be using Tony’s death to serve their personal interests and we urge all residents of Rochdale to unite and support Azhar Ali for a better Rochdale.” They urged begged more contentious contenders to stay out of the race entirely.
The declaration was made in response to a post made over the weekend on X by left-wing politician and former Celebrity Big Brother participant George Galloway, who said that he will run in the forthcoming by-election “to teach #Starmer and #GenocideLabour a lesson.”
