Joanne Anderson elected Liverpool City Mayor after second round count
Joanne Anderson has been elected city mayor of Liverpool.
Ms Anderson, who was only elected to the authority representing Princes Park ward in 2019, is the city’s first black leader and first female leader.
However, she was run a close second by independent candidate Stephen Yip, who made it through to the second round of counting.
Following the first round count at Liverpool Tennis Centre Ms Anderson registered 38,958 votes, while Mr Yip received 22,047.
The second round saw Ms Anderson’s votes rise to 46,493, while Mr Yip amassed a total of 32,079.
Candidates who fell at the first round were: Roger Bannister (TUSC) – 2,912; Katie Maria Burgess (CON) – 4,187; Tom Crone (GREEN) – 8,768; Richard Kemp (LIBDEM) – 17,166; Steve Radford (LIB) – 7,135.
There was a 30.51% turnout in the city mayoral vote. Of the first round votes cast, Joanne Anderson was on 38.51%, and Stephen Yip was on 21.79%.
Former mayor, Joe Anderson, withdrew from the ballot following his arrest last December linked to allegations of conspiracy to commit bribery and witness intimidation.
He was administratively suspended by the Labour Party in the wake of his arrest and release on police bail. He is no longer on police bail and has not been charged. He has vowed to clear his name.
Mr Yip, founder of children’s charity KIND (Kids in Need and Distress) and a Freeman of the City, announced his candidature for the role in February.
The brother of TV actor David Yip, he said the city needs unity following a series of arrests in relation to police investigations into property deals. Since he announced he was standing the Government has published a damning report into the running of the city council.
Referring to the city’s recent set-backs, Ms Anderson apologised on behalf of the Labour party and the administration, and said: “Today is the beginning of the fresh start that we all want and need.”
Today, you elected me as your Mayor of Liverpool. It will be the honour of my life to serve this city.
This is the beginning of a fresh start for our city – I won’t let you down.
From the bottom of my heart, thank you 🌹❤️ pic.twitter.com/vNCUB6xTSw
— Joanne Anderson (@Joanne4Mayor) May 7, 2021
Paul Cherpeau, chief executive of Liverpool Chamber of Commerce, said: “We are committed to supporting Liverpool City Council in its efforts not only to help Liverpool to recover from the pandemic, but moreover to place the city at the heart of an ethical and value-led economic region that is positioned for future growth.
“A major part of the task ahead is to secure funding and training opportunities that give businesses the confidence to grow once again and lead local people back into work without delay. It will be important for the city to support specific sectors that have been hardest hit by the pandemic, such as hospitality or tourism, as well as those facing new trade and export challenges in a post-Brexit world.
“We also hope to see continued investment in High Street regeneration across the city and support for longer term capital projects such as the Knowledge Quarter, which germinate new opportunities for innovation and creative and digital skills.”
He added: “The partnership approach which the city council adopted to address the challenges of COVID-19 has demonstrated how much we can achieve working collaboratively, and we are looking forward to working with Joanne Anderson to take that partnership to the next level.”
