LABOUR have comfortably won a by-election in the Greater Manchester area after securing nearly 70 per cent of the vote share.
Andrew Western won the Stretford and Urmston constituency, a safe Labour seat in Greater Manchester, with a majority of 9906, securing 69.65% of the votes - up 9.34% on the snap General Election three years ago, and with a 10.5% swing from the Tories to Labour.
Western, Labour’s leader of Trafford Council and now the new MP, said his victory showed people are fed-up with the Conservative Party and Labour is now ready to govern.
But the turnout was just 25.8% on a freezing cold day in south Manchester, with temperatures dipping to minus six centigrade, before polls closed.
Problems with postal votes may also have hit the turnout.
Western said: “There has been a strong message sent with the result this evening.
“And the people of Stretford and Urmston do not just speak for this constituency but for millions more people up and down the land, who know that this Government has been letting us down for the past 12 years.
“Twelve failing years of Conservative government, coming to an end.”
The ballot was called after former shadow minister Kate Green stepped down to become Greater Manchester deputy mayor.
