Labour has held Burnage in Manchester after Carl Austin-Behan won the council by-election with 1,365 votes.
Green Party candidate Daoud Nawaz finished second on 1,037 votes, leaving Labour with a majority of 328.
The Workers Party of Britain came third with 466 votes, Reform UK fourth with 315, the Liberal Democrats received 31 and the Conservatives 27.
A total of 3,254 votes were cast for the six candidates, with turnout reported at 23.55%.
Labour holds former council leader's seat
The by-election was triggered after Bev Craig resigned as a Burnage councillor following her election as Mayor of Greater Manchester in July.
Craig had also served as leader of Manchester City Council, making the contest an important test for Labour in a ward where the Greens had made significant recent progress.
Austin-Behan's victory means the seat remains in Labour hands.
Greens finish second
The Green Party had entered the contest with reason for optimism after winning Burnage's regularly scheduled council election in May 2026.
In that contest, Green candidate Asma Alam won 2,257 votes, compared with Labour's 1,446.
However, Labour reversed that order in the September by-election, with Austin-Behan defeating Nawaz by 328 votes.
On the reported candidate vote, Labour secured approximately 41.9%, the Greens 31.9%, the Workers Party 14.3%, Reform UK 9.7%, the Liberal Democrats 1.0% and the Conservatives 0.8%.
Austin-Behan returns to Manchester City Council
Austin-Behan previously represented Burnage on Manchester City Council between 2011 and 2018 and served as Lord Mayor of Manchester in 2016-17.
His election therefore marks a return to the council eight years after he last represented the ward.
Full result
Carl Austin-Behan — Labour — 1,365 votes (41.9%)
Daoud Nawaz — Green Party — 1,037 votes (31.9%)
Gaz Ranjha — Workers Party of Britain — 466 votes (14.3%)
Heather McDonagh — Reform UK — 315 votes (9.7%)
Abdullah Vavdiwala — Liberal Democrats — 31 votes (1.0%)
Bhupinder Kumar — Conservative — 27 votes (0.8%)
LABOUR HOLD