Cllr John Scoble wins Horwich North seat in by-election

The victory was emphatic, with Cllr Scoble beating out second-place candidate Wendy Parkinson of Reform by over 500 votes.

The seat had been empty since early May, when the previous councillor – Ryan Bamforth – vacated it.

(Image: Dan Dougherty)

Cllr Scoble said: “We’re very happy – it’s more Horwich.

“It’s good that the seat is going to a resident in Horwich, so we will be able to carry on doing more good work for the people in the area.

“Thanks to my agent – he’s sorted me out a few times – and thanks for everybody.

“For us, this is about Horwich, and Horwich has now got the seat back after it was vacated by someone who abandoned his position.

“So thank you very much.”

Bolton council now has five councillors representing Horwich and Blackrod First Independents.

Reform candidate Wendy Parkinson (Image: Dan Dougherty)

These are Cllrs Peter Wright, Victoria Rigby, Andrea Finney, and leader David Grant.

Ryan Bamforth, who held the Horwich North seat until vacating it in May, was previously a Horwich and Blackrod First independent councillor.

He left the party in June of 2024, continuing the represent Horwich North as an independent candidate until his resignation in May.

Cllr Akhtar Zaman with Labour candidate Graham Dawson (Image: Dan Dougherty)

One story of the night was the battle between Horwich and Blackrod Independents and reform.

Bolton Council Leader Akhtar Zaman said: “This election matters very much in terms of Reform, because if Reform win the seat they will be in a better position in the council.

(Image: Dan Dougherty)

“We’re all very interested now in what impact Andy Burnham is having on the electorate – we hope it will be a positive one.”

Reform candidate Wendy Parkinson said she was ‘disappointed’ by the result, but stated it was to be ‘expected.’

All candidates stressed a commitment to local politics.

“When you solve lots of little things, big things get solved more easily,” said Ms Parkinson.

Peter Brett Hopkinson with his support dog Princess (Image: Dan Dougherty)

This was echoed by Cllr Scoble, when he stressed the importance of the seat going to a ‘resident in Horwich.’

Labour candidate Graham Dawson, Green candidate Nicola Salmon, and independent candidate Peter Brett-Hopkinson all expressed similar sentiments.

There were seven candidates in total:

Graham Dawson – Labour – 343 votes

Peter Brett Hopkinson – Independent – 13 votes

Raymond Ndokwo – Conservative and Union Party – 71 votes

Wendy Parkinson – Reform – 541 votes

Nicola Salmon – Green – 189 votes

John Francis Scoble – Horwich and Blackrod First Independents – 1186 votes

Scott James Turner-Preece – Liberal Democrats – 27 votes