East Midlands Mayor: Labour's Claire Ward wins first-ever election
win, saying that she was grateful for their support and believed that together they could make a positive difference in the community. Ward also urged her colleagues to work together in a spirit of cooperation and civility to achieve common goals and improve the lives of their constituents. She expressed optimism about the future and pledged to do her best to represent her constituents with honesty, integrity, and dedication.
The BBC News from the East Midlands region is reporting an update on a news story. The latest information about a current event is being provided by the BBC News team in the East Midlands area.
Claire Ward from the Labour Party has been chosen as the inaugural mayor for the East Midlands region.
The creation of a mayoral position is a condition of a devolution agreement worth £1.14 billion for the region. The role will have jurisdiction over Derby, Nottingham, Derbyshire, and Nottinghamshire.
On Friday afternoon, the outcome of the election was announced at the Lexus Nottingham Tennis Centre.
According to the East Midlands Combined County Authority, the voter participation rate for the election was 27.6%.
There were enthusiastic shouts and applause from followers of the Labour party when the outcome was verified.
181,040 individuals chose Ms Ward as their preferred candidate, while Mr Bradley received 129,332 votes, putting him in second place.
Frank Adlington-Stringer, who represented the Green Party, came in at third place with a total of 50,666 votes. Alan Graves from the Reform party received 49,201 votes.
Matt Relf, who was running independently, was able to gather 23,359 votes during the election. In contrast, Helen Tamblyn-Saville, who represented the Liberal Democrats, received 15,970 votes.
During her triumphant address, Ms Ward expressed to the audience that the Labour party is fully prepared to take charge and appreciated the residents for supporting her cause.
"I understand your message clearly: you're prepared for a transformation," she declared.
"You have not just relied on me, but also on a transformed Labour party that you have faith in."
During his speech, Mr. Bradley expressed his deep disappointment for losing after a challenging campaign. Nevertheless, he firmly believed that the devolution deal presented a great chance for the East Midlands and its people to prosper.
Mr Adlington-Stringer expressed his satisfaction with ranking third in the polls and stated that the Green Party has achieved a significant milestone in history.
Authored by George Torr, a political reporter for Radio Derby
The Labour party had a sense of assurance beforehand, although a few supporters appeared anxious earlier in the day. However, their worries were unfounded.
Just one hour after the counting process began at noon, we received an email notification. The sender, who appeared to be affiliated with a particular political party, confidently asserted that they were on the verge of winning the election, leaving the Conservatives in second place.
Claire Ward's squad did not make any assumptions earlier in the day, and she refrained from giving any interviews before the outcome was announced. Eventually, she emerged victorious with a total of 181,040 votes.
There has been much talk about Reform UK, but they were surpassed by the Green Party and ended up in third place. In Ashfield, where Lee Anderson is the only MP representing them, they came in fourth.
The task ahead for Ms. Ward is massive and includes spreading the word that she is the leading authority for the locality, championing efforts to attract investments and enhancing the systems for public transportation among other things.
It's a bit challenging to handle that task - just a small percentage, 27.6%, of qualified voters within those areas showed up to choose a leader who will manage a massive budget of £1.14bn for the forthcoming 30 years.
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