The votes have been cast. For the first time, the fine people to the north of the River Tyne have taken to the voting booth and are electing a mayor. As a proud northeast organisation, we're really excited about finding out who's going to by the first North of Tyne Mayor.
While we wait, we've been looking at what the people of the region are saying about each candidate. And based on the online chatter, which candidate looks like they may be cracking open the bubbly later in the day?
Who people are talking about?
Labour candidate Jamie Driscoll is comfortably the most discussed of the candidates. However, a higher proportion of Independent John McCabe's comments were positive.
Views of the candidates
John Appleby is seen as the principal challenger to Labour, but may worry about the number of people who see him as second choice.
Charlie Hoult has been given positive reviews on economic growth, but has been criticized for describing the Thatcher government policy towards the North East as "harsh medicine" - difficult but necessary.
Jamie Driscoll is seen as a radical new alternative, and this is generally very positively received. While there is no suggestion of antisemitism on his part whatsoever, however, the antisemitism scandal in Labour has affected the perception of him a litte.
Hugh Jackson has been seen as positive for the fishing industry, but there has been criticism around his describing Tommy Robinson as "not a racist".
John McCabe has been praised for his stance on Mental Health support, but his position on Brexit hasn't been clear to everyone.
So who's going to win?We think Jamie Driscoll's got it, with John McCabe doing better than people think. Whoever wins, we hope they use this platform to make a real difference to our amazing region.
