Labour’s Bev Craig elected mayor of Greater Manchester, succeeding new UK PM Andy Burnham

LONDON - Britain’s ruling Labour Party comfortably retained the mayoralty of northern Greater Manchester on Aug 1, following an election triggered by new Prime Minister Andy Burnham’s return to Parliament.

Bev Craig, currently the leader of Manchester City Council, was elected in a second round of counting after winning 47.15 per cent of the votes in the first round, just shy of the 50 per cent needed to win outright.

The anti-immigration Reform UK party, which has been riding high in national polls, came in second place with 21 per cent.

In the second round, Labour gained over 58,000 more votes when second preferences of eliminated candidates were taken into account, with Reform picking up 45,250 more votes, according to results published on the mayoral website.

Craig ended up with 309,525 first or second preference votes compared to 157,178 for Reform’s Sian Astley.

More than two million people were eligible to vote in the July 30 poll. Turnout was just under 25 per cent, according to the published results.

Burnham first won the post in 2017 and was re-elected twice, most recently in 2024 with 63 per cent of the vote.

His staunch defence of the region earned him the nickname “King of the North”.

“You are the right person to lead this great city region forward into its best decade ever,” Burnham said on Aug 1 at a victory event in Manchester.

Former Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham became Britain’s prime minister in July 2026, replacing Keir Starmer. PHOTO: REUTERS

Burnham announced in May that he would fight a by-election in the Makerfield constituency in order to try to return to Parliament.

He won the seat in June, paving the way for him to return to Westminster and successfully challenge former prime minister Keir Starmer for the leadership of the party and country.

His two-week-old government announced earlier on July 31 plans to allow mayors to keep a share of taxes collected in their area to empower their regions.

The initiative is part of Burnham’s drive to shift power out of the highly centralised country’s London seat of government. AFP