Peterborough Conservatives have every reason to celebrate after the May local elections, with the party increasing its representation on Peterborough City Council from 10 to 13 seats, overtaking Labour to become the largest political group on the council.
It's a result that reflects the sheer hard work and dedication of our candidates and campaign teams over recent months, made all the more impressive given the uncertainty they faced in the run-up to polling day.
Earlier this year, Peterborough's Labour-run council voted to ask the Government to cancel this year's local elections altogether, citing the ongoing local government reorganisation. For weeks, our candidates didn't know whether the election they had been preparing for would even go ahead. To their credit, they kept campaigning and kept knocking on doors regardless. When the Prime Minister reversed that decision in February and confirmed the elections would proceed as planned on 7 May, our teams were ready and had lost none of their momentum.
That preparation paid off. Among the highlights, the Conservatives gained Park Ward from Labour, where Murtaza Ahmed-Munir overturned a seat that had been comfortably held by Labour just three years earlier, Ivelina Banyalieva won her seat from the Lib Dems in Paston and Walton and the party comfortably won back Ravensthorpe, with Gul Nawaz returned with a strong vote share.
Across the city, residents saw a Conservative team that never stopped campaigning, even when it looked as though they might be denied the chance to put their case to voters at all. That resilience and commitment to local democracy is something every one of our candidates, volunteers and supporters should be proud of.
Thank you to everyone who campaigned, delivered leaflets, knocked on doors, and turned out to vote. This is a strong foundation to build on as we continue standing up for Peterborough.