Former shadow chancellor Ed Balls has rejected his position as Labor’s candidate in the upcoming by-elections in Wakefield.
There has been speculation this week that the former Labor MP – and Strictly Come Dancing star – could be targeted for a potential return to Westminster.
This was followed by a poll by YouGov, according to which Mr. Bols was the second most popular politician in the United Kingdom in the first quarter of 2022.
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It was thought that the Labor Party might want to use the opportunity as an opportunity to bring the former Chancellor back into the shadows of the Wakefield front line.
But on Friday night, Mr Balls said he would not challenge the former Red Wall for Labor.
“I came back from New York to find that Wakefield’s speculation continues,” he wrote on social media.
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“I appreciate all the announcements, but to remove any doubt, no one has told me about it and I do not intend to introduce myself when the current MP finally resigns!”
The by-elections in Wakefield were announced after Imran Ahmad Khan was found guilty of sexual violence and announced his resignation.
Khan, whose conservative whip was lifted before resigning as an MP, announced his intention to appeal the conviction.
Image: Ed Balls was Chancellor in the Shadows from 2011 to 2015
After losing his previous seat in Morley and Outwood to Conservative MP Andrea Jenkins in the 2015 general election, Mr Balls appeared on the hit BBC hit Strictly Come Dancing and took on a number of leading roles.
This has probably contributed to his public profile, with a YouGov survey finding that 91% of respondents can identify who he is.
Image: The former Labor MP has been prompted to run in the upcoming by-elections in Wakefield
Labor this week declined to comment on any rumors about who will be Wakefield’s Labor candidate.
It is not yet known when the by-elections will take place, but they will come at a turbulent time for Boris Johnson, who faces constant calls to resign over the party scandal.
Mary Cree, a former Labor MP from Wakefield who lost her seat to Khan in 2019, also refused to run again in the constituency.
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