Burnley Council by-elections: results in for Laneahead and Queensgate wards
Independent candidates have won in two Burnley Borough Council by-elections held on Tuesday this week.
The by-elections took place in the Queensgate and Lanehead wards, where independents Musharaf Parvez and Shiraz Ahmed respectively received the most votes.
The vacancy in the Lanehead ward came after independent councillor Fiona Wild stepped down from the council in September following criticism for a social media post she made following the assassination of conservative commentator Charlie Kirk in America.
Queensgate’s by-election was triggered after the resignation of independent councillor Syeda Kazmi.
Both women had originally been elected as Labour candidates before leaving the party to become independents.
In Lanehead, Mr Ahmed polled 706 votes to his nearest challenger, Reform UK’s Gavin Theaker who received 510 votes. Labour’s Millie Towers received 262 votes. The Conservatives’ Dale Ferrier received 61, followed by the Green Party’s Affan Khan Burki with 50.
In the Queensgate ward, victor Musharaf Parvez received 679 votes, with Reform UK’s Victoria Fletcher in second who polled 240 votes. Labour’s Dylan Rea gained 133 votes, followed by Green Party candidate Janet Hall on 71 and independent Javad Mokhammad with 52. The Tory candidate Susan Nutter received 43 votes.
Turnout in the Queensgate ward was 27.23% and in Lanehead the turnout was 34%.