COVENTRY CIty Council remains firmly in Labour control after voters went to the polls yesterday.
Only 27 per cent of voters bothered to turn out for the local election – in a year without a general election on the same day.
Counting took place overnight at the Ricoh Arena for all 18 council wards in Coventry.
And the results were the most uneventful in living memory for Coventry elections – as only one of those 18 seats on the 54-member local authority changed hands.
That was in Earlsdon which was gained by Labour from the Conservatives.
Kindy Sandhu beat Tory candidate Mike Ballinger by 156 votes on a much higher turnout than elsewhere, of 42 per cent.
Issues in Earlsdon have included the future of its community library.
It contrasted with results elsewhere such as in Nuneaton and Bedworth, where Labour lost overall control with a major swing to the Tories.
It is thought there that a collapse in the UKIP vote explains the result – with many ex UKIPers switching to the Conservatives.
As usual, only one of the three seats for each Coventry ward was contested – meaning voting only took place for a third of the council.
The results mean Labour now has 40 councillors, the Conservatives have 13, and there is one independent councillor – the former Consevative Glenn Williams.
Former council leader Ann Lucas won in Holbroook, despite apparent procedural errors in her nomination as candidate by councillor Rachel Lancaster, who has been living outside the ward, as we reported yesterday.
Cabinet members who kept their seats for Labour included Kevin Maton in Henley, and former council leader John Mutton in Binley and Willenhall.
Conservative councillors who held their seats included Roger Bailey in Cheylesmore, David Skinner in Westwood, and former Lord Mayor Gary Crookes in Wainbody.
