East Herts Council by-election: Richard Townsend retains Bishop's Stortford All Saints seat for Liberal Democrats
Liberal Democrat Richard Townsend has added an East Herts district council seat to his role as a Bishop's Stortford town councillor.
The 62-year-old retired IT operations and training consultant retained the Bishop's Stortford All Saints seat for his party in a by-election on Thursday (May 6) triggered by the resignation in March of Dr Louie Corpe, who also held a town council seat.
He polled 1,194 votes, almost half the total number cast, beating his fellow town councillor, Conservative Shane Manning, by 373 votes and Labour's Tom Diamond, who also stood in the Bishop's Stortford West division in the Herts County Council election.
The by-election count was held as part of the county council count for the East Herts district at Wodson Park Sports and Lesiure Centre in Ware on Saturday (May 8). It was delayed on the advice of the county's director of public health, Jim McManus, as a Covid precaution and the ballot papers were quarantined for at least 24 hours.
Cllr Townsend was elected to the town council as a member for All Saints in the May 2019 local elections.
A former Metropolitan police special constable for six years, he is married with three grown-up children and has lived in Stortford since 1992.
He serves as a community governor at Birchwood High School, a trustee for Bishop’s Stortford Street Pastors and on the neighbourhood police priorities panel.
Before Thursday's poll he said that if elected: “I will support and promote the carbon-neutral (by 2030) and renewable energy targets, and push for key residential speed reductions (20’s Plenty).
“I believe free school meals during holidays to be critical to the wellbeing of less privileged families and will work towards effective implementation.
“I will work for better, cleaner and affordable public transport and low-carbon alternatives, fixing major potholes and improving pedestrian experience.
“I oppose planning rule relaxation and will fight against breaches of the adopted neighbourhood plans.
“I will push for truly affordable social housing and decent homes for our younger adults.”
For Cllr Manning, 31, it was a third electoral defeat in four attempts in the last two years.
He was unable to emulate his town council by-election victory in December 2019, when he won the All Saints seat left vacant by the death of Liberal Democrat veteran and former mayor Mike Wood.
In May that year, he had stood for All Saints seats on the town and district councils, coming sixth in both polls as the Liberal Democrats took all three seats on both councils.
East Herts Council has 50 councillors representing 30 wards: 40 Conservatives, 6 Lib Dem, 2 Green and 2 Labour.
EAST HERTS COUNCIL BISHOP'S STORTFORD ALL SAINTS BY-ELECTION
Richard Townsend (Lib Dem) 1,194 / 49.6%
Shane Manning (Con) 821 / 34.1%
Thomas Diamond (Lab) 392 / 16.3%
Turnout 40.83% Result Lib Dem hold
2019 results (3 elected)
Chris Wilson (Lib Dem) 1,042
Terence Beckett (Lib Dem) 995
Louie Corpe (Lib Dem) 979
Colin Woodward (Con) 732
Patricia Moore (Con) 635
Shane Manning (Con) 602
Margaret Barker (Lab) 281
Eamonn Abbott (Lab) 255
Alistair Lindsay (UKIP) 195
Turnout 36.28% Result 3 Lib Dem gains from Con