All 82 seats are up for grabs in next month’s Cheshire East Council elections, writes Belinda Ryan.
Altogether 254 candidates are standing across the borough, with the Conservatives putting forward the most candidates at 81 and Labour fielding 60.
The Greens have 34 candidates standing and the Liberal Democrats have 30.
Outside of the mainstream parties, candidates are standing as Independents as well as those standing for such groups as Alderley Edge First, Bollington First, Putting Crewe First, Tytherington Ward Independents, Residents of Wilmslow and the Women’s Equality Party.
Two candidates are standing for Reform UK and one for the Social Democratic Party.
There is also a candidate this year for the Official Monster Raving Loony Party.
Cheshire East has 82 councillors in 52 wards.
The council is currently run by a joint Labour and Independent administration after the Conservatives, who had been in control since the council was formed in 2009, lost their majority in 2019.
Despite not being in control, the Tories are still currently the biggest party on Cheshire East.
The make-up of the council at present is 30 Conservative councillors; 24 Labour; 17 Independent Group councillors – this group includes others such as Bollington First, Residents of Wilmslow and Alderley Edge First.
The Liberal Democrats currently have four councillors on Cheshire East and there also four non-grouped councillors – they are Independents who are not members of the Independent Group.
At present three seats are currently vacant. The Handforth seat has been vacant since November of last year following the sad death of Independent councillor Barry Burkhill.
And Labour’s Steve Carter, who represented Macclesfield Hurdsfield, passed away in December.
One of the Macclesfield Tytherington seats is also vacant after Independent member Lloyd Roberts resigned from the council.
The local elections take place on Thursday, May 4 and this year you will need photo ID when you go to vote.
For more information about voter ID and to see a full list of all the candidates standing in this year’s Cheshire East Council elections, visit the council’s website and click on the Election 4 May 2023 tab on the home page.
Mr Mullan deciding to opt for a safer seat beyond C+N, with a show of true integrity, might make my voting decision so much easier!
The Labour Parties current attack on the PM is poor and distasteful. If they do this for Local Elections how low will they go in the run up to the General Election.
Our present MP’s performance in the H of C has not been good, nor is his response to constituency enquiries. Hopefully he will go to Eddisbury and not be selected.
Are you going to cover the Town/Parish elections locally?
#CreweFirst are fighting all 20 seats on Crewe Town Council.
The Tories are fighting just EIGHT of the 20 seats.
Support for the Tories in Crewe has collapsed.
Dear Editor,
On December 13th 2022, you reported that Crewe & Nantwich MP Kieran Mullan had announced he intended to stand again, for Crewe and Nantwich, in the next general election, likely to be in 2024.
You said that the Conservative MP, made the announcement on social media because he had to confirm that month whether he intended to run again to represent the constituency where he has been MP since December 2019. You quoted him saying “When I think about what I have done it makes me want to stick at it. So, I have decided that I will stand for re-election.”
Just 3 months later, on March 28th, you reported that a senior, but unnamed, local Conservative has urged Dr Kieran Mullan to stand down as an MP at the next election, following claims he wants to ditch Crewe and Nantwich for the safer Eddisbury seat. Now it is indeed a shame that this Councillor won’t be named, though probably daren’t be named for fear of disciplinary action.
Keiron Mullan has remained tight-lipped over the claims that he has expressed an interest in the Chester South and Eddisbury seat. If he hasn’t expressed an interest in it though, it would have been oh so easy to just say so. If he has expressed an interest in the Chester South and Eddisbury seat, well some would wonder why he says one thing in December and three months later seeks not to do the thing he said he wanted to do. Maybe staying silent is easier.
Is Keiron Mullan in hiding? I’d like to see him come out and answer the question as to whether he has talked to Phillip Posnett, the Eddisbury Chair of the Conservative Association, about being put up for Edward Timpson’s seat, properly called the Chester South and Eddisbury seat, at the next election. I should think most of the Conservatives who are putting themselves forward for election on May 4th know the answer to my question, but they are not telling us. Why not?
So, my next question is why should voters, vote for the Conservative candidates, many of whom will know whether Keiron Mullan has expressed an interest in Edward Timpson’s seat, but are staying silent and keeping that information from voters?
Can I ask voters, at the local election on May 4th, to send Keiron Mullan a message by voting for anyone other than a Conservative, because they are all staying quiet.
The electorate need Councillors who speak out and put residents before Party.