New Era for Greater Manchester: Bev Craig Takes Helm Amidst Election Fallout

Bev Craig has been elected as the new Mayor of Greater Manchester, succeeding Andy Burnham who stepped down to become Prime Minister after winning the Makerfield by-election. Ms Craig, a Labour politician and former Manchester council leader, secured a resounding victory, winning almost two-thirds of the overall vote share in an election marked by a historically low turnout and widespread confusion over the voting system.

The election, held on Thursday, July 30, with votes counted on Friday, July 31, was conducted using the 'supplementary voting system.' This system allows voters to choose both a first and a second preference candidate. If no candidate secures over 50% of the first-choice votes, the top two candidates proceed to a second round where second preferences are added. This led to a prolonged count at Co-op Live, extending late into the night. Bev Craig received 47% (251,449 votes) in the first round, just under the 50% threshold, alongside Reform UK's Sian Astley, who garnered 21% (111,928 votes). After the second round, Craig triumphed with a total of 309,525 votes (66%), while Astley received 157,178 votes (34%).

The supplementary voting system, previously used in 2017 and 2021 but replaced by 'first past the post' in 2024 before being reinstated by the Labour government this year, proved to be a source of significant confusion. Statistics from the Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) revealed that over 4,400 votes were not counted because voters placed their first and second crosses in the same column, and nearly 13,000 others only used one of their two votes. Professor Rob Ford, a political science researcher at the University of Manchester, noted the system was poorly explained and many voters were unaware they had two votes until presented with the ballot paper. He also highlighted that the system is not favored by political experts for effectively representing public preferences, as second-choice votes for less popular candidates are effectively discarded if those candidates don't make the final round. The GMCA stated election booklets were provided to every household and social media posts explained the system, but public understanding remained low.

The turnout for the mayoral election was 25.14%, with 538,659 votes cast from an electorate of 2,142,779, marking the lowest in the history of the Greater Manchester mayoral role. This decline from 32.05% in 2024 and 34.7% in 2021 raised