Boroughs vote for elected mayor

Richard Moss
Political Editor, BBC North East and Cumbria

Votes for Mayor will be cast in Hartlepool and on North Tyneside

The ballots for elected mayors in Hartlepool and on North Tyneside are likely to be closely watched for pointers to the next General Election.

The contest with widest significance is North Tyneside.

Labour mayor John Harrison is seeking a second term. But he may find it tough.

The Conservatives won the first two mayoral contests in the area, and in their 2005 victory Labour turnout was boosted by the General Election being held on the same day.

They do not have that advantage this time and Linda Arkley, the woman he defeated, should have a chance of winning.

Monkey outfit

The area also contains Tynemouth, a seat they must win to secure a General Election victory, so anything less than a Conservative triumph will be disappointing.

The Lib Dems will just be looking for a respectable third.

The other mayoral contest in Hartlepool is more off-the-wall.

The main political parties are in there and fighting, but it is dominated by a growing field of Independents.

That includes the current mayor Stuart Drummond, who is seeking a third term.

He originally stood as a joke in his role as Hartlepool FC mascot, H'angus the Monkey, but has has long since ditched the monkey outfit for a proper council leader's suit, and could be the favourite to win again.

A curiosity

Labour's campaign does look more professional and serious this time, and has a populist (if difficult to achieve) pledge to freeze council tax for pensioners, but a win seems unlikely.

Meanwhile, the Tories and Lib Dems will be looking to poll better than they have done in the past.

But they face a strong challenge for the minor places from UKIP, who've done well in the town before, and the Greens.

Then there is a whole gaggle of Independents ranging from former athlete Tony Morrell, to a biology teacher, a businessman and a former aide to an ambassador.

All these factors are likely to make that election more of a curiosity than a guide to anything wider.