LEADER of Tameside Council going into the election Cllr Brenda Warrington conceded the paltry turnout was a sign of people getting tired of politics.
Like many others who were left open mouthed as low figures were revealed, the Denton West representative was surprised.
However, she admitted the number of ‘gates’ that dominated the national media agenda in the run up to Thursday, May 5 may have put many people off opening their gate to go to the polls.
“That could be a factor,” Cllr Warrington said. “I think generally people have got turned of the national political scene, regardless of party.
“There have been so many things that have been churning over and over and I think people have got weary of that national scene.
“That always reflects on local elections, always.
“As a local politician, I’d like to see some things resolved. It’s not so much being tired of it, it’s more, ‘Look, let’s get to grips because we need to take this country forward.
“We need to get off our backsides. The Covid-19 recovery is going to carry on and what we must do is kickstart this country again.
“There are so many things going wrong with the cost of living, the high taxation, energy prices, fuel prices, all of those things impact on people’s lives.
“We need to start focussing on the real issues that people are suffering right now. National issues get tiresome but they do need to be resolved.
“Although I have to say on the doorstep, my experience on the doorstep – and I went around a few wards – was not one of people raising national issues.”
Cllr Warrington saw figures like 23.5 per cent and 29.6 per cent stand out almost as much as the results themselves.
But she also believes the Covid-19 pandemic may still have played a part, adding: “It’s very difficult to put your finger on it.
“One of the reasons could be that we’re still coming out of the Covid-19 pandemic.
“We’re still in that recovery phase and there are still a lot of people that are actually quite frightened of leaving their homes.
“Lots of people have got out and it’s almost as if Covid-19 never happened but there are still a lot of people who are isolating themselves.
“I think that played some part, although I don’t know what percentage that may have been.
“It was a low turnout, lower than we would’ve liked, but it would appear to have been country wide.”
Despite low turnout and other issues that would soon follow, Cllr Warrington was content at Labour holding on to 48 of its 51 seats.
“I’m delighted,” she insisted. “The election went really well for Labour in Tameside.
“We had a couple of disappointments but on the whole we came through and maintained our position as the majority stakeholder in Tameside.
“It’s still red and it will stay red.”