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THE Labour Party swept to power in Liverpool yesterday, ending 12 years of Liberal Democrat rule.
New council leader Cllr Joe Anderson led his party to an impressive victory, taking the group's share of the 90 council seats up from 39 to 48, a clear majority.
The defeated Lib-Dems, who looked resigned to their fate throughout the lengthy count at Wavertree Tennis Centre, saw their share of council seats slashed from 46 to 37.
There were notable casualties, with education executive member Keith Turner losing his Old Swan seat to Cllr Anderson's 28-year-old daughter Joanne.
Another upset saw Labour take West Derby from the Lib Dems, although they took some consolation by retaining the St Michael's seat with candidate Sharon Green.
Yesterday, deposed council leader Cllr Warren Bradley's future as Lib-Dem group leader was in doubt after he said he had not decided whether or not to resign following his party's crushing defeat to Labour.
A total of 181, 385 voters turned out for the polls, an overall turnout of 56.2%.
Speaking after the result, Cllr Anderson said he had "gone...