Charlie Alford

Manchester’s lowest-ever election turnout results broken down

Post author:Cameron Baillie
Post published:4 August 2026
Post last modified:4 August 2026

After a string of high-profile elections, Greater Manchester has elected another Labour mayor in Bev Craig. On the face of things, that might seem like nothing much of a change. But having been around Gorton and Denton, local elections, Makerfield and the mayoral, I can assure readers that things have changed in the region. For progressives, that change isn’t looking too great. Burnham got over 420k votes last time so 251,449 is not good for Labour. — Lady Jane Simkins (@JaneSim66) July 31, 2026 Manchester experiences poor voter turnout The most striking statistic is undoubtedly dire voter turnout on Thursday. Only…

Property and poverty dominate Manchester’s mayoral election politics

Post author:Cameron Baillie
Post published:1 August 2026
Post last modified:1 August 2026

Two phrases — housing and affordability — sung out across Greater Manchester’s mayoral election. Perhaps unsurprisingly, they’ve dominated more than anything else in manifestos, hustings and social media alike. In my view, these two terms are polished, neoliberal-era euphemisms for what we’re really talking about. These underlying, harder-hitting phenomena are actually: property (ownership) and poverty (often, lack of ownership). I think it’s time that we collectively note that point, first things first. But even if there’s a hesitation to talk about property and poverty as such, they are still being discussed. One more remarkable aspect of my weeks covering this mayoral…

Property and poverty dominate Manchester’s mayoral election politics

Post author:Cameron Baillie
Post published:1 August 2026
Post last modified:1 August 2026

Two phrases — housing and affordability — sung out across Greater Manchester’s mayoral election. Perhaps unsurprisingly, they’ve dominated more than anything else in manifestos, hustings and social media alike. In my view, these two terms are polished, neoliberal-era euphemisms for what we’re really talking about. These underlying, harder-hitting phenomena are actually: property (ownership) and poverty (often, lack of ownership). I think it’s time that we collectively note that point, first things first. But even if there’s a hesitation to talk about property and poverty as such, they are still being discussed. One more remarkable aspect of my weeks covering this mayoral…

Greater Manchester’s working class rallies against far-right advance

Post author:Cameron Baillie
Post published:27 July 2026
Post last modified:27 July 2026

Across Greater Manchester, the last few years have seen a rise in openly racist street activity and anti-Muslim attacks. Unprecedented electoral success for Reform in the recent local elections met and likely spurred this on. This mirrors familiar trends across Britain, wider Europe and internationally. Open fascism swells in Greater Manchester The first half of 2026 saw far-right group Britain First call two major national mobilisations on the streets of central Manchester. There, Greater Manchester Police were ‘disproportionately’ hostile towards antifascists and counter-demonstration organisers, rather than countering openly fascist elements. Further evidence, if it were needed, that the British state’s hired…

Greens messaging on Manchester’s mayoral vote needs some work

Post author:Ed Sykes
Post published:19 June 2026
Post last modified:20 June 2026

The Green Party is likely to be the most credible left-wing option in Manchester’s mayoral election on 30 July. But to win, the Greens need to make sure their messaging is as strong as possible. Are Greens ‘the only party that can beat Reform’? It would be great, for example, if the Greens could avoid using the phrase ‘we’re the only party’. Because ahead of the mayoral election, they immediately came out with that message. And that was despite Labour having just won in Makerfield (which is in Greater Manchester). Across Greater Manchester – Bolton to Salford, Trafford to Stockport, Greens…