Labour won a resounding victory in the Stoke Newington Central by election after a hard fought campaign.

 New Councillor Louisa Thomson said:

"I'm delighted to have been elected as the new Labour councillor for Stoke Newington Central - it's a massive honour and privilege and I'm looking forward to getting started and representing all residents here, whether they voted for me or not.

The Greens went into the by-election campaign confident that the would win and brought in Green activists from all over the country to help out. But they didn't manage to offer a coherent local vision for Stoke Newington. In contrast, Labour exceed expectations and won with a convincing margin over the Greens. We focussed on local issues and solutions - especially on community safety, the Council's plans to freeze council tax for the fourth year in a row and improvements to the local environment.

I think the victory in Stoke Newington Central was a vote of confidence in the Labour Council in Hackney, and what we are offering locally.

One of the best things about the campaign, was having the chance to talk to so many local residents and hear their ideas and things they want to improve in my ward. Now by working as part of a strong Labour team on Hackney Council I have the chance with my ward colleagues to put that into practice and help make that happen."

The results were as follows:

 
Labour          1162       47.8% (+2.5% from 2006)

Green            783        32.2% (+3.3%)

LD                 297        12.2% (-4.6%)

Con               169         6.9% (-2.1%)

Communist     20           0.8% (+0.8%)

 
Majority          379 (up from 144 in 2006)

 

Turnout          30.3%