Labour maintained control of Rochdale Borough Council, winning 16 of the 20 available for election — and taking two seats from the Middleton Independents.
The Labour Party, led by West Middleton ward’s Neil Emmott, now hold a total of 46 seats of the 60 on the council, bolstering what was already a Labour stronghold.
Councillor Richard Morgan Jackson beat Conservative candidate John Hartley by a total of seven votes to claim Littleborough Lakeside, which was left without a councillor after Conservative Peter Reed stepped down prior to the election.
Coun Jackson said: “Whether it’s one vote or 700, ultimately it’s all the same.
“We knew it was going to be a tight race but we knew we could get it over the line.
“I’m fed up with all the negativity going around so now it’s all about trying to make those positive changes for people.”
The Middleton Independent party, which held four seats on the council before the election, were beaten by Labour’s Elizabeth Atewologun Terry Smith in the North and East Middleton wards, respectively.
One member of the Middleton Independent party said they were “shocked and disappointed” with the result.
The overall turnout for both the Heywood and Rochdale Leisure Centre polling stations was 30.5%, with Labour receiving 53% of the votes, Conservative receiving 23%, and the Liberal Democrats with 12%.
There were 49,205 votes cast, representing 30.5% of eligible voters.
The make-up of the council is now:
Labour 46
Conservative 9
Liberal Democrats 3
Middleton Independents 2
