Council leader Ian Ward was elected to continue in power for another four years after a fierce Labor election battle in Birmingham.
He is now resuming his role as leader of Birmingham City Council after a dramatic challenge in which he won 33-31 in a highly contested vote. He welcomed a bold offer for his post from his cabinet counterpart, Vassim Zafar.
Liz Clements was eliminated after the first round of voting, with two of her supporters giving Ward the crucial two votes he needed to give a majority.
The result calls into question the future of Zafar, who had already told Ward that he would not serve in his new office. Now he is back on the bench as a Lozells adviser, his ambitions crushed so far.
Read more: Live updates from the Birmingham City Council leadership battle
Ward had come in today, saying he was “confident” of the outcome, but was clearly worried about Zaffar’s challenge. We understand that Zaffar released his offer only after he was confident that he would have the numbers he needed to succeed. Apparently he was either wrong or Ward was able to convince the doubters that it was their best option.
If he succeeded, he would be the first colored man, the first Asian, and the first Muslim to rule the city in a historic moment.
Backbencher Liz Clements entered the battle only after it became clear that there would be a runoff, exposing her credentials as a feminist and socialist with climate change and poverty, its key issues. She also wanted to ensure that a female voice was heard in the leadership debate.
The full results were as follows: First vote – Ward 31, Zafar 28, Clements 6. Clements eliminated. Then the second preferred votes of her supporters were added to the votes of the first round, three were for Zaffar, two for Ward and one was spoiled. This gave Ward 33 and Zafar 31.
Speaking to BirminghamLive immediately afterwards, Cllr Ward said he was pleased to be back as council leader and would now continue to present the manifesto his advisers took part in last week’s local elections.
Earlier, he said he was confident of the outcome, with positive talks with councilors, but also with unions, lawmakers and “senior Labor figures” about his candidacy.
He also said that some community leaders supported him. “They include (people from) the African-Caribbean community, the Asian community, the LGBT community, the whole cross-section of people in this wonderfully super-diverse city, and they came together and offered me support.
“Birmingham is a city of 1.2 million people. The leader of the council has a huge responsibility and must serve and support all our diverse communities. The people of Birmingham need a leader they can trust.
He also drew attention to allegations made by Vassim Zafar and repeated by Liz Clements in their speeches to councilors, which hinted that he was a leader who rejected the challenge and failed to listen enough to his colleagues on the back bench. during his term.
“It’s not my style to try to silence the debate,” he said. “I’m very inclusive and I like to hear different opinions.”
The leader’s position brings in a bonus of more than £ 75,000 plus expenses and puts Ward in charge of an annual budget of £ 3.2 billion and overseeing services for 1.2 million people.
As a person who has been at the forefront of the preparations for the British Community Games, the result also means that he will be in his place to lead the festivities during the 11 days of sport, which are only weeks away.
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