Andy Burnham wins third term as mayor

Labour's Andy Burnham has won his third successive term as mayor of Greater Manchester.

Mr Burnham's overwhelming win saw him receive 420,749 votes, almost two-thirds of those available, which he said was an "emphatic endorsement" of his policies.

He said he looked forward "to getting on with the job again", adding: "I won't let you down."

Mr Burnham received more than 350,000 more votes than the Conservatives' Laura Evans, who came second with 68,946.

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Independent candidate Nick Buckley narrowly came third with 50,304 votes, ahead of Reform UK's Dan Barker, who got 49,532, and the Green Party's Hannah Spencer, who received 45,905.

The Liberal Democrats' Jake Austin came last with 28,195 votes.

'Ready to fight harder'

Accepting his victory, Mr Burnham thanked the other candidates for a "good, straight" election and said it meant "absolutely everything to me" to be given a third term.

He said his policies had always been "place first, rather than party first" and would remain that way and he pledged to complete his transport reforms and unite "tram, train, bus and bike" by the end of the next mayoral term.

He said it had been hard to "keep Greater Manchester moving forwards, while the country is moving backwards".

However, he said he was "ready to fight harder than I have ever fought for anything before, for a Greater Manchester where people can live free from the fear of debt, hunger and eviction, and where everyone is set up to benefit from the growing success of our city region today".

Mr Burnham also thanked his family, who arrived with him at the count, for their continued support

The mayor of Greater Manchester has the most powers of any elected mayor outside London and oversees decisions in relation to areas including public transport, strategic planning and housing, productivity and skills, economy and innovation, and the environment.

They also fulfil the role of police and crime commissioner as well as hold responsibility for Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service.

In his acceptance speech, Mr Burnham said he wanted the government to go even further and devolve more powers the mayor's office.

"Devolution in England is working and these elections show voters are buying into it, but it is time now to go much further," he said.

"My new mission will be to give everyone growing up here an equal alternative to the university route, so all our young people have a path in life and hope in their heart.

"My new plea to Westminster is to give us the powers to free ourselves from the grip of the housing crisis and let us build a benefit system that helps people move forward, rather than holds them back."

The turnout was 32.05% with 669,509 votes cast.

Polling expert Prof Sir John Curtice said Mr Burnham was re-elected with 63% of the vote, down four points on 2021, but due to a nine-point decline in the Conservative vote, there was still a net swing of 3% from Conservative to Labour.