Labour’s Philip Glanville re-elected as Mayor of Hackney

All smiles: Mayor Philip Glanville at the election count. Photograph: Julia Gregory

Voters delivered no surprises in Hackney, with Labour’s Philip Glanville returned as directly elected mayor.

Glanville said: “This is about change, this isn’t about re-electing me, but is about a new administration.”

He added: “When we say we’ll work together for a better Hackney, we mean it. We mean it on the cost of living, we mean it on anti-racism, we mean it on equality, we mean it on climate action, we mean it on the housing crisis.

“We mean it on running the best services that we can.”

He took 59 per cent of the vote on a day when turnout was down – with 34 per cent of voters casting their ballot for the borough’s top political job.

Glanville said the council needs to rebuild trust following the disastrous cyber attack in 2020 which hit services including housing benefit and has frustrated residents.

Mayoral candidates said the cost-of-living crisis was a key issue on the doorstep, more so than partygate.

Zoë Garbett took second place for the Greens. Photograph: Julia Gregory

Taking second place, Green candidate Zoë Garbett said she will continue fighting to combat the climate crisis in Hackney.

The Conservative’s Oliver Hall, who is sitting second year law exams soon, said: “Public service is what gets us up in the morning, it is what motivates us to do more for our communities.”

He said he will continue to fight to get rid of controversial low traffic neighbourhoods (LTNs) and on housing issues.

The Liberal Democrat candidate Helen Baxter said voters need their council to listen to them. She said many voters felt they were not listened to over LTNs.

Gwenton Sloley, the Hackney People Before Profit candidate, said: “People do not feel listened to. A lot of people want to abolish the mayoral system.”

He said: “We are zero-tolerance on hate crime, we’re all about love. I spoke to my grandmother Eunice Rochester last night, and she said to me, ‘Son, I came over on the Windrush and for you to be running for mayor of Hackney, you’ve already won’.”

With the cost of living rising and residents worrying about making ends meet after the pandemic, the mayor faces a testing four-year term.

Glanville first became Hackney Mayor in a 2016 by-election with 22,595 votes, and was re-elected to the role in 2018 with 42,645 votes – when 36.9 per cent of voters cast their ballots. The Greens came second in both elections.

The results in full are:

Helen Baxter, Liberal Democrat, 4,320 votes (7 per cent)

Zoë Garbett, Green, 10,373 votes (17 per cent)

Philip Glanville, Labour, 36,049 votes (59 per cent)

Oliver Hall, Conservative, 8,160 votes (13 per cent)

Gwenton Sloley, Hackney People Before Profit, 2,105 votes (3 per cent)