ANDY Burnham has become the first elected mayor of Greater Manchester.

The Labour candidate polled 63 per cent of the votes to win the historic election in a convincing landslide, well ahead of Tory candidate Sean Anstee.

Mr Burnham, the former MP for Leigh, pledged to repay the faith shown in him by Bolton voters — more than 34,000 of whom backed him — when he starts his new job on Monday.

He said: “I feel so grateful to the people of Bolton, they have always given me great support.

“I feel very humbled by the result. All I can say to them is that I will give it my all.

“They have given me their backing and I will repay it with everything I have got.”

The turnout in Bolton was 29.34 per cent — considerably lower than would be expected for a general election, but higher than many people predicted.

Out of an electorate of 1,982,343 in the 10 boroughs of Greater Manchester, 573,543 votes were cast - giving a turnout of 28.93 per cent.

Mr Burnham, a former Labour cabinet minister, says that tackling homelessness across Greater Manchester will be his first priority.

His flagship campaign policy was a pledge to end rough-sleeping in the city-region by 2020 and he confirmed that he will launch a new homelessness fund on Monday to put shelter over every head in Greater Manchester.

After his victory was declared in Manchester today, Mr Burnham said: "Whether you voted for me or not, I will be a strong voice for you — the people of Greater Manchester.

"This is the dawn of a new era of politics, not just in our city-region but for politics in our country. It has been too London-centric for too long.

"The old political and party structures haven't delivered for all people and places. They have created this crisis is politics that we are living in now.

"We can hold as many general elections as we like and that will not solve the problem.

"We have worked hard to get to this moment and we are not going to waste it. Greater Manchester is going to take control."

Mr Burnham came top of the polls in every borough, including the Tory stronghold of Trafford where Mr Anstee is the council leader.

He added: "The voice and the values of Greater Manchester are about to shine through and be heard like never before.

"We are going to do what Manchester likes doing best and run by different rules.

"This will be place not where politics is done to people, but with them and for them.

"Greater Manchester stands on the verge of a great new era. This is our moment and great things are about to happen here."

The Labour candidate won 34,650 votes in Bolton, ahead of Mr Anstee on 16,068 and Liberal Democrat Jane Brophy on 2248.

UKIP candidate Shneur Odze won 1,378 votes, with English Democrat Stephen Morris on 1,158, and Green candidate Will Patterson on 867.

Independent candidates Mohammad Aslam and Marcus Farmer polled 865 and 242 votes respectively.

Mr Anstee said: "I'm proud to have played my part in this first mayoral election and to have presented a positive and exciting campaign.

"Over 128,000 people put their faith in me, many of whom voted Conservative for the very first time. I wish Andy every success."

After a night in which the Labour Party suffered heavy losses in local council elections up and down the country, Greater Manchester bucked the trend.

Bolton Council leader Cliff Morris said that the result showed that Labour was "very much still fighting" in the region.

He added: "It will be great to have Andy Burnham providing a national voice and leading the way for Greater Manchester."

Cllr Nick Peel, Bolton Council cabinet member, added: "This was a massive victory beyond my expectations.

"To win all 10 boroughs, including the Tory stronghold of Trafford and traditionally Lib Dem Stockport, was an amazing result for us.

"I don't think anyone can put a positive spin on what happened to the Labour Party in the other local elections, but we can say with confidence now that the Labour fightback starts in Greater Manchester."

The £110,000-a-year role gives new metro mayors powers over policing, fire, housebuilding and transport, as well as influence over other areas such as health and social care.

The mayor will also have a say on big strategic issues for the region, while individual councils carry on with day-to-day decisions.

Mr Burnham conceded that despite his "emphatic" victory, Labour's overall performance has been "mixed" elsewhere in the country.

He finished his acceptance by saying that Greater Manchester has changed the world before, citing the Co-operative movement and the Suffragettes, and would do so again.

He left the count at the Manchester Central Convention Complex surrounded by family and friends to cheers and applause from supporters, who had been confident of a strong victory throughout the day.

Cllr Roger Hayes, Bolton Liberal Democrat leader, said he believed that Mr Burnham's name recognition had been the key factor in his election.

He said: "Bolton did not want a Greater Manchester mayor, it has been forced upon us by the government. I wonder now whether we will get more money and more power as has been promised.

"I think Jane Brophy has fought a very good campaign, but unfortunately we did not have the publicity that Andy Burnham has."

He added that next month's general election would be an entirely different proposition.

The overall election results across Greater Manchester were: Andy Burnham, Labour — 359,352; Sean Anstee, Conservative — 128,752; Jane Brophy, Liberal Democrat — 34,334; Will Patterson, Green — 13,424; Stephen Morris, English Democrat — 11,115; Shneur Odze, UKIP — 10,583; Mohammad Aslam, Independent — 5,815; Marcus Farmer, Independent — 3,360.

Salford reported the lowest turnout, 25.11 per cent, and Trafford had the highest with 38.35 per cent.