Bev Craig
Beverley Anne Craig is a British Labour Co-op politician serving as the leader of Manchester City Council, and the councillor for Burnage. As leader she is also a member of the Greater Manchester Combined Authority and is the combined authority's portfolio lead for Economy, Business and Inclusive Growth. She was also a founding signatory of Open Labour, an activist group for the soft left of the Labour Party.
Standing...
Stories...
Aug 3, 2026
Center
The Labour candidate just held the Greater Manchester mayoralty, winning comfortably but producing numbers her party would rather not see.
Lib Dems see her success as proof of Labour's structural advantage in the North West, but the weak mandate gives them an opening to challenge Labour's local record.
Aug 2, 2026
Lean Right
Craig won Thursday's by-election to succeed Andy Burnham as Greater Manchester's mayor, vowing to use his newly expanded devolved powers.
A regional UK story with limited direct U.S. stakes, but Labour's organizational win interests the right as evidence of center-left machine strength.
Aug 1, 2026
Lean Right
Succeeds Andy Burnham as Greater Manchester’s mayor, marking a shift in UK local governance.
Viewed with suspicion as a Labour Party loyalist likely to advance progressive urban policies, reinforcing Lean Right concerns about unchecked left-wing municipal power.
Aug 1, 2026
Lean Left
Elected as the new Mayor of Greater Manchester, succeeding Andy Burnham after his resignation.
Praised for maintaining Labour's dominance in a critical urban battleground, countering Reform UK's advance and reinforcing the party's progressive local governance agenda.
Aug 1, 2026
Far Right
Elected as Greater Manchester's new mayor, succeeding Andy Burnham in a Labour stronghold.
Her victory symbolizes Labour's grip on urban power bases, reinforcing Reform UK's marginalization in left-leaning cities where migration and crime policies are most contentious.