Andy Street elected as West Midlands Mayor
Former John Lewis boss Andy Street has been named the first Mayor of the West Midlands.
The Conservative candidate beat Labour’s Siôn Simon with 50.4% of the vote after the second preference votes were counted.
Andy Street gave up his job running retailer John Lewis to take part in the mayoral race and his manifesto includes backing local employers such as Jaguar Land Rover and he also has plans to transform the public transport system in the West Midlands.
His manifesto also includes a long-term housing plan, aims of championing the West Midlands around the world and making sure that the area makes a success of Brexit.
Voters from seven local authority areas – Birmingham, Coventry, Dudley, Sandwell, Solihull, Walsall and Wolverhampton – cast their votes yesterday for the mayor, who will serve a three-year term.
The total turn out from the region was 26.68%. The turn out across the region varied, with the highest being Solihull with 33.68%, and the lowest being in Sandwell with 23.27%.
The election was one of six “metro mayors” being elected as part of the devolution. The other regions are Greater Manchester, Liverpool city region, Tees Valley, the West of England, and Cambridge and Peterborough.
Watch Andy Street’s acceptance speech (from 4.00 minutes):
#wmmayor Final results https://t.co/NChxH5DkGI
— West Mids CA (@WestMids_CA) May 5, 2017
