Labour wins Govan council ward by-election

LABOUR has won the by-election for the Govan ward of Glasgow City Council, succeeding in taking a seat previously held by the SNP.

John Kane, pictured on the campaign trail last month. Picture: Complimentary

Councillor Allison Hunter had held the seat until her death in July this year after a long cancer battle, with Labour’s John Kane defeating the SNP’s Helen Walker, and 12 other candidates, including one man contesting the by-election as an independent against the Offensive Behaviour at Football Act.

The result was declared early on Friday morning, with Mr Kane winning 2055 votes to Ms Walker’s 1424.

John Flanagan, of No bedroom Tax - No Welfare Cuts came third with 446 votes.

The poll was run on the Single Transferable Vote system, with turn-out recorded as 20.06 per cent.

Mr Kane’s victory in the by-election provides a boost for Labour, who strengthen their grip on Glasgow, with Labour’s win leaving Govan as the only council ward with no SNP representation.

Gordon Matheson, Labour leader of the council, told The Herald: “There’s no way the SNP can spin their way out of this dramatic result. What odds would the bookies have given a year ago on Govan ward being SNP-free?

“With less than 12 months until the referendum, support for the nationalists has slumped in Glasgow. Councillor John Kane joins a strong Labour administration which continues to focus on the issues that matter to people, not the abstraction of separatism.”