A Labour councillor suspended by her party over claims of a “Muslim plot” against her leader has won re-election with a landslide majority.
Joyce McCarty, a former deputy leader of Newcastle City Council, won another term in office at Thursday’s local elections, polling 63% of the vote and finishing more than 1,200 votes ahead of the nearest competitor. It came despite her being suspended by her party, pending an investigation into alleged Islamophobic comments made after outgoing council leader Nick Forbes was ousted earlier this year.
In a text message seen by ChronicleLive, she wrote that she had heard that his deselection in the Arthur’s Hill ward was a “Muslim plot” organised by councillors in the West End to get more black, Asian, and minority ethnic (BAME) candidates selected. Despite being suspended at the end of March, she remained on ballot papers as a Labour candidate because her nomination forms were lodged before the suspension.
Read More: Newcastle City Council local election results 2022 - How every candidate scored
In the safe Wingrove seat, she polled 1,547 votes on Thursday – well ahead of Green candidate John Pearson’s 332 in second place.
While Labour’s victories are usually greeted by rapturous cheering from councillors and activists on election nights in Newcastle, there was silence in the counting hall at Northumbria University’s Sport Central when Coun McCarty’s vote tally was read out by returning officer Pam Smith. Neither Coun McCarty nor Coun Forbes were present at the count.
Coun McCarty has been a councillor since 1994, was Labour’s deputy leader in the city from 2007 to 2021, and deputy leader of the council from 2011 to 2021.
Abdul Samad, who was chosen in February to stand for Labour ahead of the council leader, won comfortably in Arthur’s Hill. He told ChronicleLive: “I am proud and ecstatic to have been given this opportunity and hopefully I can do right by the council and support the residents to Arthur’s Hill to make sure their voices are heard.”
Asked why he chose to go up against Coun Forbes, Mr Samad said: “I didn’t see it as that, I have stood for election in the past and I just wanted to get involved in serving the community. I was fortunate enough to be selected and I am not going to say no to a chance like that.”
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