Voters in the East End of Newcastle will go to the polls to elect a new councillor this week.
A by-election is being held on Thursday to fill a vacancy in the Byker ward, following the resignation of Labour councillor Stephen Sheraton in January. Four candidates are standing in the March 2 by-election, in a ward which is a Labour stronghold where city council leader Nick Kemp also sits.
The candidates are:
- Nicholas Terry Hartley - Green Party
- Hayder Alam Umor Qureshi - Labour Party
- Mark William Ridyard - Liberal Democrats
- Aaron Whelan Harvey - Conservative Party
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Coun Sheraton, who resigned his post due to ill health, had sat on the council since 2021 when he won the Byker berth previously held by the long-serving George Allison.
There is also a vacancy in the Chapel ward in the outer west of Newcastle, after the resignation of independent Graham Middleton. No by-election will be held there, however, with Mr Middleton’s seat instead to be contested at the local elections in May, which is when his term had been due to end.
With the two currently vacant seats, Labour holds 50 spots on the council, with the Lib Dems being the main opposition with 21. There are three councillors from the Newcastle Independents party and two independents.
A third of the council’s seats, one for each of the 26 wards, will be up for grabs on election day on May 4.
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