Who will get your vote in the May elections?
DOZENS of election hopefuls will be hoping to pull off a similar upset in the local elections to that of Rochdale MP George Galloway, who triumphed in the February byelection.
The leader of the Workers Party of Britain promised to field candidates in the local election on May 2 to oust Labour from Rochdale council – and with 92 candidates standing, it looks as though he is hoping to make good on that promise.
In Rochdale there are 20 seats up for grabs out of a total 60 this year.
The political make-up of the council is dominated by Labour who currently have 46 councillors.
Making up the 60 include nine Conservatives, three Liberal Democrats and two Middleton Independents.
The Labour Group has control of the council. Big names to grace the ballot paper this year include the leader of the Lib Dems Andy Kelly, who is hoping to keep his seat in Milnrow and Newhey, as well as Rochdale by-election candidates Iain Donaldson (Lib Dem), Paul Ellison (Conservatives) and Billy Howarth (Workers Party formerly independent).
A number of Labour’s top brass are up for election as well with cabinet members Daniel Meredith, Daalat Ali, Carol Wardle, Susan Smith and Shah Wazir all fighting to keep their seats.
In addition to the options of who they want as their local councillor, residents will get to vote on who they want as their next Greater Manchester mayor as incumbent Andy Burnham’s spot is up for election as well.
So residents will have two boxes to cross when they get their ballot paper.
Applications to register to vote must reach the Electoral Registration Officer by midnight on Tuesday, April 16. Applications can be made online.
If you do not currently have an accepted form of photo ID such as a passport or driving licence, you can apply for a Voter Authority Certificate before 5pm on
April 24. The deadline to apply for a postal vote is 5pm on April 17.
Here is the council candidate standing for each ward seat in Rochdale:
Balderstone and Kirkholt
Leonard Branton (CON); Mick Coats (GREEN); William Howarth (WORKERS); Daniel Meredith (LAB); John Swarbrick (LIB DEM)
Bamford
Jamil Akhtar (WORKERS); Philip Beal (CON); Peter Corby (GREEN); Zarah Kauser (LIB DEM); Lewis Woodall (LAB)
Castleton
Thomas Byrne (WORKERS); Malcolm Bywater (CON); Aisling Gallagher (LAB); Sharon Harrison (LIB DEM); David Jones (IND); Jonathan Kershaw (GREEN)
Central Rochdale
Ali Ahmed (LAB); Farooq Ahmed (WORKERS); Naveed Akhtar (LIB DEM); Shajan Ali (CON)
East Middleton
Gillian Jackson (CON); Barrie Nicholson (LIB DEM); Dylan Williams (LAB); Bernard Wynne (MIDDLETON INDEPENDENTS)
Healey
Paul Ellison (CON); Anja Jungmayr (GREEN); Andy Lord (LIB DEM); Amr Nazir (WORKERS); Shah Wazir (LAB)
Hopwood Hall
Claudius Chonzi (CON); Iain Donaldson (LIB DEM); Caitlin O’mara (MIDDLETON INDEPENDENTS); Steve Potter (REFORM); Carol Wardle (LAB)
Kingsway
Saghir Ahmed (LIB DEM); Daalat Ali (LAB); Lynn Butterworth (CON); Mark Hollinrake (GREEN); Haroon Khan (WORKERS)
Littleborough Lakeside
Tom Besford (LAB); Ian Jackson (CON); Safina Kauser (LIB DEM); Hannah Macguire (GREEN); Uzair Mehmood (WORKERS)
Milkstone and Deeplish
Feruz Ali (GREEN); Minaam Ellahi (WORKERS); Rifat Mahmood (LIB DEM); Shahid Mohammed (LAB); Philip Starr (CON)
Milnrow and Newhey
Aiden Forshaw (CON); Avis Gilmore (LAB); Rashida Jordan (WORKERS); Andy Kelly (LIB DEM); Stephen Sharp (GREEN)
Norden
Sana Aziz (WORKERS); Sarah Croke (GREEN); Sue Moore-lewis (LAB); Stephanie Robertson (LIB DEM); Peter Winkler (CON)
North Heywood
Saliah Begum (WORKERS); Mike Howard (REFORM); Jennifer Kelly (LIB DEM);
Paul O’neill (LAB); Jordan Tarrant-short (CON)
North Middleton
Kath Bromfield (LAB); Keeley O’mara (MIDDLETON INDEPENDENTS); Chariss Peacock (LIB DEM); Aaron Slack (LAB)
Smallbridge and Firgrove
Zulifiqar Ali (LIB DEM); John Blundell (LAB); Eileen Taylor (CON)
South Middleton
Tracy Furnell (CON); Tony Hughes (LIB DEM); June West (LAB); Lee Wolf (MIDDLETON INDEPENDENTS)
Spotland and Falinge
Rabina Asghar (LIB DEM); Ann Conway (CON); Carl Faulkner (IND); Faisal Rana (LAB)
Wardle Shore and West Littleborough Adam Branton (CON); Kim Ho (LIB DEM); Syed Kazmi (LAB); Martyn Savin (GREEN); Ali Shahid (WORKERS)
West Heywood
Peter Joinson (LAB); Umar Malik (WORKERS); Tom Shaw (LIB DEM); Stephen Spencer-jones (CON)
West Middleton
Nikki Edwards (LIB DEM); Matthew Roughsedge (CON); Susan Smith (LAB); Janene Walker (MIDDLETON INDEPENDENTS)