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Stuart Drummond
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Mayor of Hartlepool
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| Preceded by | New Office |
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| Born | 29 November 1973 |
| Political party | Independent |
Stuart Drummond (born 29 November, 1973) is the first directly-elected mayor of Hartlepool in North East England.[1] He was first elected in 2002 and was re-elected in 2005[2] and 2009. He is the first elected mayor in Britain to win a third term.[3]
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Biography
Drummond was born 29 November 1973. He gained an HND in business finance and languages at Salford University.[1] Before his election he had played the mascot – 'H'Angus the Monkey' – for Hartlepool United F.C.
Mayor of Hartlepool
He stood for election to Mayor of the Borough of Hartlepool, a unitary authority in the north east of England, in the 2002 election. He was originally put up for election by the football club, as a publicity stunt for their mascot and the football club.[citation needed] He took part in no serious campaigning and his only promise was for the council to provide free bananas for school children. He was the only candidate absent from the various local forums and question and answers sessions held during the campaign.[citation needed] Unexpectedly Drummond was narrowly elected, beating the second place Labour Party candidate by 5,696 to 5,174. The result was greeted with widespread hilarity, attracting attention far beyond Hartlepool. Canada's National Post newspaper ran the headline "Monkey wins mayoralty, regains human form".[4]
After his election, Drummond stood down as mascot. Drummond failed to fulfil his commitment to ensure the council provide free bananas due to a shortage of funds, although he worked with Hartlepool Primary Care Trust to ensure fresh fruit was available in all schools.[5] Drummond is most commonly found at home matches where he has a regular spot in the Mill House Stand, although he does refuse to talk politics during the match.[citation needed] Drummond also writes a regular column in home match programmes for Hartlepool FC. On 5 May, 2005, Drummond was re-elected as the mayor of Hartlepool with an increased majority of 10,205. On 4 June, 2009, Drummond was re-elected for a third term.[3]
A campaign group set up in 2006 hopes to trigger a referendum that would abolish the office of mayor and adopt the alternative leader and cabinet system of local government leadership.[6]
Drummond is married to Rebecca and they have three children, a son and two girls.
References
- ^ a b Oliver Wright, Monkey business turns serious for Hartlepool. The Times. London (UK): May 4, 2002. pg. 13
- ^ Sarah Weaver, Elected mayor stops the monkey business. The Times. London (UK): May 7, 2005. pg. 63
- ^ a b Hartlepool Mayor wins third term. BBC News, 5 June 2009
- ^ National Post news services, "Monkey wins mayoralty, regains human form" (Toronto edition headline)/"Monkey mascot wins $121,800 job as mayor" (all but Toronto edition headline), National Post (Canada), 4 May 2002, archived online at http://www.fpinfomart.ca, $4.95 fee to view full article.
- ^ Peter Hetherington, Gorilla tactics. The Guardian, 27 April 2005
- ^ Jill Sherman, Voters aim to throw out mayors they say are acting like dictators. The Times. London (UK): Sep 4, 2006. pg. 8
External links
| Preceded by New Creation |
Mayor of Hartlepool 2002 – Present |
Succeeded by Incumbent |
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