It was a frustrating night for Labour in Bolton as they failed to live up to high expectations. The borough has been in no overall control since 2019, but has been run by the Conservatives through an agreement with smaller parties.
A third of the 60 seats on Greater Manchester's only Tory-led council were up for grabs this time around, and Labour were hopeful of benefiting on the back of Partygate and the cost of living crisis.
Yet the night failed to live up to its billing as Labour gained just two seats and missed out on several key targets. By the end of the night, their total number of councillors stood at 19, while the Conservatives increased their tally by one - to 23.
