Labour has held on to a council seat in the Salford
constituency of Communities Secretary Hazel Blears, despite her
involvement in the expenses row.
Matt Mold won the Irwell Riverside by-election with a reduced majority. The Lib Dems came second and the BNP third.
......
Ms Blears attended the count on Thursday night and said she was "absolutely delighted" with the outcome.
Speaking afterwards, she said: "The result shows the values of Salford people are the values of the Labour Party."
Labour officials in Salford had braced themselves for a backlash from voters and a possible surge in BNP support.
In the end, with voter turnout just 17.5%, Mr Mold received 606 votes followed by the Liberal Democrats with 293.
A 17.5% turn out demonstrates that not voting as a means of protest against the current system will only play into the hands of the ZNL, and, as someone who has been so disillusioned by politics for the past 30 years that I haven't voted for anyone.
Not anymore.
This is not Democracy.
Not anymore.
This is not Democracy.
