Steve Rotheram has won the race to become the Labour candidate in Liverpool’s Metro Mayor elections.
The Walton MP beat off competition from Joe Anderson, the current Mayor of Liverpool, and Wavertree representative Luciana Berger.
An announcement confirming Rotheram’s selection was made at the city’s ACC Liverpool convention centre this morning.
He won a total of 2,029 nominations in the first round of voting compared to the 1,641 received by Mayor Anderson and Ms Berger’s 1,202.
That was increased to 2,670 in the second round to extend his lead over closest challenger Anderson to 628.
“I have travelled the length and breadth of our City Region and have spoken with people in every borough, from all walks of life, who share the same ambition as me,” said Rotheram.
“To build a City Region that utilises the energy, the talents, the ideas and the hopes of all our people, to transform the present and begin to shape its future, creating a more vibrant, more prosperous area.
“As Metro Mayor, I will put social justice at the heart of my administration; something which I’ve been passionate about all of my political career. I’ll stand up for ordinary people and be a real champion for Merseyside and Halton on the national and international stage.
“Devolution presents us with a unique opportunity to make decisions locally, in the interests of local people, to ensure each person within our six districts has the best chance in life.”