2023 Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council election

2023 Rochdale Council election

←  2022 4 May 2023 2024  →
20 out of 60 seats of Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council 31 seats needed for a majority
First party Second party   Leader Neil Emmott John Taylor Party Labour Conservative Last election 42 seats, 50.8% 10 seats, 20.3% Seats won 16 3 Seats after 46 9 Seat change 3 1 Popular vote 27,837 9667 Percentage 56.5% 19.6% Swing 5.7 0.9   Third party Fourth party   Leader Andy Kelly Lee Wolf Party Liberal Democrats Middleton Ind. Last election 3 seats, 17.3% 5 seats, 9.1% Seats won 1 0 Seats after 3 3 Seat change 0 2 Popular vote 5865 2461 Percentage 11.9% 5.0% Swing 5.4 4.1
The winner of each seat in the 2023 Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council Election
Leader before election Neil Emmott Labour Leader after election Neil Emmott Labour

The 2023 Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council elections took place on 4 May 2023 alongside other local elections across the United Kingdom. One third of seats (20) on Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council were contested.

Labour retained its majority on the council. ^{[1] [2]}

Background

The Local Government Act 1972 created a two-tier system of metropolitan counties and districts covering Greater Manchester, Merseyside, South Yorkshire, Tyne and Wear, the West Midlands, and West Yorkshire starting in 1974. Rochdale was a district of the Greater Manchester metropolitan county. ^[3] The Local Government Act 1985 abolished the metropolitan counties, with metropolitan districts taking on most of their powers as metropolitan boroughs. The Greater Manchester Combined Authority was created in 2011 and began electing the mayor of Greater Manchester from 2017, which was given strategic powers covering a region coterminous with the former Greater Manchester metropolitan county. ^[4]

Since its formation, Rochdale has variously been under Labour control, Liberal Democrat control, Conservative control and no overall control. Councillors have predominantly been elected from the Labour Party, Liberal Democrats and the Conservative Party, with some independent councillors also serving. The council has had an overall Labour majority since the 2011.

In the most recent election in 2022, where all 60 seats on the council were up for election, Labour won 42 seats with 50% of the vote, the Conservatives won ten seats with 20% of the vote, the Middleton Independents Party won five seats with 9% of the vote and the Liberal Democrats won three seats with 17% of the vote. ^[5]

Electoral process

The council generally elects its councillors in thirds, with a third being up for election every year for three years, with no election in the fourth year. ^{[6] [7]} The election will be conducted using the first-past-the-post voting system, with each ward electing one councillor.

All registered electors (British, Irish, Commonwealth and European Union citizens) living in Rochdale aged 18 or over were entitled to vote in the election. People who lived at two addresses in different councils, such as university students with different term-time and holiday addresses, were entitled to be registered for and vote in elections in both local authorities. Voting in-person at polling stations took place from 07:00 to 22:00 on election day, and voters were able to apply for postal votes or proxy votes in advance of the election.

Results

2023 Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council election
Party		This election			Full council			This election
		Seats	Net	Seats %	Other	Total	Total %	Votes	Votes %	+/−
	Labour	16	3	80	30	46	76.7	26,198	51.2
	Conservative	3	1	15	6	9	15.0	11,306	22.1
	Liberal Democrats	1	0	5	2	3	5.0	5,865	11.5
	Green	0	0	0	0	0		3,664	7.2
	Middleton Ind.	0	2	0	2	2	3.3	3,368	6.6
	Independent	0	0	0	0	0		607	1.2
	Freedom Alliance	0	0	0	0	0		197	0.4

Asterisks denote incumbent councillors seeking re-election.

Balderstone & Kirkholt

Balderstone & Kirkholt ^[8]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Elsie Blundell	1,124	58.4	+8.9
	Conservative	Mudassar Razzaq	451	23.4	−0.1
	Green	Jordan Eves	185	9.6	−5.5
	Independent	Laura Grabowska	164	8.5	+1.9
Majority			673	35.0
Turnout			1,924
	Labour hold

Bamford

Bamford ^[9]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Steve Anstee	1,580	53.8	+6.2
	Labour	Rosie Choudhury	1,033	35.2	+2.5
	Liberal Democrats	Siobhain Cunnane	324	11.0	−1.5
Majority			547	18.6
Turnout			2,937
	Conservative hold

Castleton

Castleton ^[10]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Aasim Rashid	882	39.4	−5.4
	Conservative	Malcolm Bywater	473	21.1	−6.1
	Independent	David Jones	443	19.8	N/A
	Liberal Democrats	John Swarbrick	227	10.1	−6.3
	Green	Jonathan Kershaw	213	9.5	N/A
Majority			409
Turnout			2,238
	Labour hold

Central Rochdale

Central Rochdale ^[11]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Sameena Zaheer	2,487	72.9	+20.9
	Liberal Democrats	Abdul Ghafoor	601	17.6	−18.0
	Conservative	Shajan Ali	323	9.5	+5.5
Majority			1,886	55.3
Turnout			3,411
	Labour hold

East Middleton

East Middleton ^[12]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Terry Smith	1,588	61.7	+19.5
	Middleton Ind.	Bernard Wynne	697	27.1	−17.9
	Conservative	Aaron Slack	289	11.2	N/A
Majority			891	34.6
Turnout			2,574
	Labour gain from Middleton Ind.

Healey

Healey ^[13]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Tricia Ayrton	1,789	68.9	+17.9
	Conservative	Sajid Mahmood	587	22.6	−9.4
	Liberal Democrats	Safina Kauser	221	8.5	−3.6
Majority			1,202	46.3
Turnout			2,597
	Labour hold

Hopwood Hall

Hopwood Hall ^[14]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Peter Hodgkinson	1,415	64.9	+18.1
	Conservative	Claudius Chonzi	408	18.7	−10.5
	Middleton Ind.	Matthew Glaysher	257	11.8	−5.5
	Liberal Democrats	Iain Donaldson	100	4.6	N/A
Majority			1,007	46.2
Turnout			2,180
	Labour hold

Kingsway

Kingsway ^[15]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Rachel Massey	1,650	68.6	+12.4
	Conservative	Ibrahim Khalil	384	16.0	−7.8
	Liberal Democrats	Sharon Taylor	200	8.3	−4.6
	Green	Mark Hollinrake	172	7.1	−5.0
Majority			1,266	52.6
Turnout			2,406
	Labour hold

Littleborough Lakeside

Littleborough Lakeside ^[16]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Richard Jackson	1,103	44.1	+12.6
	Conservative	John Hartley	1,096	43.9	+2.0
	Green	Guy Otten	239	9.6	−5.8
	Liberal Democrats	Zarah Kauser	64	2.6	−12.8
Majority			7	0.2
Turnout			2,502
	Labour gain from Conservative

Milkstone & Deeplish

Milkstone & Deeplish ^[17]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Aiza Rashid	1,898	80.0	+32.0
	Liberal Democrats	Naveed Akhtar	232	9.8	−27.4
	Conservative	Raja Miah	148	6.2	+1.8
	Green	Feruz Ali	94	4.0	N/A
Majority			1,666	70.2
Turnout			2,372
	Labour hold

Milnrow & Newhey

Milnrow & Newhey ^[18]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal Democrats	Dave Bamford	1,297	47.2	−7.7
	Labour	Avis Gilmore	935	34.0	+9.5
	Conservative	Aiden Forshaw	349	12.7	−3.4
	Green	Stephen Sharp	167	6.1	N/A
Majority			362	13.2
Turnout			2,748
	Liberal Democrats hold

Norden

Norden ^[19]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Mike Holly	1,462	53.9	+4.5
	Labour	Farhat Kazmi	638	23.5	+2.7
	Liberal Democrats	Stephanie Robertson	382	14.1	−4.5
	Green	Sarah Croke	229	8.4	N/A
Majority			824	30.4
Turnout			2,711
	Conservative hold

North Heywood

North Heywood ^[20]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Beverley Place	1,268	78.6	+15.2
	Conservative	Nigel Morrell	346	21.4	N/A
Majority			922	57.2
Turnout			1,614
	Labour hold

North Middleton

North Middleton ^[21]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Elizabeth Atewologun	1,236	50.0	+12.3
	Middleton Ind.	Lee Wolf	1,006	40.7	+1.9
	Conservative	Darren Bayman	228	9.2	−4.8
Majority			230	9.3
Turnout			2,470
	Labour gain from Middleton Ind.

Smallbridge & Firgrove

Smallbridge & Firgrove ^[22]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Amna Mir	1,153	51.2	+2.8
	Liberal Democrats	Fezan Khalid	606	26.9	−4.1
	Conservative	Saliah Begum	294	13.1	−5.1
	Freedom Alliance	Paul Ashton	197	8.8	N/A
Majority			547	24.3
Turnout			2,250
	Labour hold

South Middleton

South Middleton ^[23]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Patricia Dale	1,527	51.8	+9.9
	Middleton Ind.	Emma Hezelgrave-Whitworth	937	31.8	+0.6
	Conservative	Bernard Braiden	486	16.5	−7.6
Majority			590	20.0
Turnout			2,950
	Labour hold

Spotland & Falinge

Spotland & Falinge ^[24]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Amber Nisa	1,479	49.3	+0.4
	Liberal Democrats	Rabina Asghar	1,143	38.1	+7.5
	Conservative	Annmarie Conway	198	6.6	−4.2
	Green	Mick Coats	179	6.0	−5.3
Majority			336	11.2
Turnout			2,999
	Labour hold

Wardle, Shore & West Littleborough

Wardle, Shore & West Littleborough ^[25]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	John Taylor	1,504	59.6	+6.3
	Labour	Julian Farnell	689	27.3	+3.9
	Green	Hannah MacGuire	186	7.4	−1.7
	Liberal Democrats	Eleanor Kelly	146	5.8	−4.1
Majority			815	32.3
Turnout			2,525
	Conservative hold

West Heywood

West Heywood ^[26]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Linda Robinson	1,184	60.4	+10.5
	Conservative	Jordan Tarrant-Short	543	27.7	−6.8
	Liberal Democrats	Tom Shaw	232	11.8	N/A
Majority			641	32.7
Turnout			1,959
	Labour hold

West Middleton

West Middleton ^[27]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Neil Emmott	1,120	60.9	+16.6
	Middleton Ind.	Peter Shore	471	25.6	−6.3
	Conservative	Matt Roughsedge	157	8.5	−2.7
	Liberal Democrats	Nikki Edwards	90	4.9	+0.7
Majority			649	35.3
Turnout			1,838
	Labour hold

References

1. Scheerhout, John; Tweed, Lyell (4 May 2023). "Rochdale council local elections 2023 results in full". Manchester Evening News. Retrieved 20 May 2023.
2. "Local elections 2023: Labour replace Tories as Bolton's biggest party". BBC News. 5 May 2023. Retrieved 20 May 2023.
3. Local Government in England and Wales: A Guide to the New System. London: HMSO. 1974. p. 7. ISBN   0-11-750847-0.
4. "The Greater Manchester Combined Authority Order 2011". Legislation.gov.uk. Retrieved 7 September 2015.
5. "Election results by party, 5 May 2022". www.rochdale.gov.uk. 5 May 2022. Retrieved 21 January 2023.
6. "Local government structure and elections". GOV.UK. Retrieved 27 April 2018.
7. "Election Timetable in England" (PDF).
8. "Election results for Balderstone and Kirkholt". Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council. 4 May 2023. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
9. "Election results for Bamford". Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council. 4 May 2023. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
10. "Election results for Castleton". Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council. 4 May 2023. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
11. "Election results for Central Rochdale". Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council. 4 May 2023. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
12. "Election results for East Middleton". Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council. 4 May 2023. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
13. "Election results for Healey". Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council. 4 May 2023. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
14. "Election results for Hopwood Hall". Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council. 4 May 2023. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
15. "Election results for Kingsway". Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council. 4 May 2023. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
16. "Election results for Littleborough Lakeside". Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council. 4 May 2023. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
17. "Election results for Milkstone and Deeplish". Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council. 4 May 2023. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
18. "Election results for Milnrow and Newhey". Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council. 4 May 2023. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
19. "Election results for Norden". Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council. 4 May 2023. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
20. "Election results for North Heywood". Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council. 4 May 2023. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
21. "Election results for North Middleton". Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council. 4 May 2023. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
22. "Election results for Smallbridge and Firgrove". Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council. 4 May 2023. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
23. "Election results for South Middleton". Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council. 4 May 2023. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
24. "Election results for Spotland and Falinge". Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council. 4 May 2023. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
25. "Election results for Wardle Shore and West Littleborough". Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council. 4 May 2023. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
26. "Election results for West Heywood". Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council. 4 May 2023. Retrieved 7 May 2023.
27. "Election results for West Middleton". Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council. 4 May 2023. Retrieved 7 May 2023.