THE regal-sounding new ward of Hulton could acquire a grim political reputation.

Anxious candidates walking the streets to canvass voters fear it will become the graveyard of a number of political careers at next month's Bolton Council election.

No less than five sitting councillors will be among those fighting it out for just three seats in the ward.

Among them are such high profile figures as the council's deputy leader of more than 20 years, Labour's Cllr Guy Harkin, and Tory whip Cllr Andy Morgan.

A shiver ran down the spine of many serving councillors in the Labour heartland of Daubhill -- as well as the Conservative strongholds of Hulton Park and Dean-cum-Heaton -- when news emerged earlier this year that their wards were to be carved up as part of a redrawing of the political map.

Those who could grabbed safer nominations elsewhere, while the rest were left to fight it out in the new ward of Hulton, made up of disparate areas loyal to opposite ends of the political spectrum.

The result is a ballot that no one is brave enough to call and a campaign that poses to be one of the bloodiest of the entire election campaign.

Every seat on the council is being contested in this year's council elections because of the redrawing od ward boundaries.

The poll will again be by postal vote only and the voting forms are going out this week. Every person on the electoral roll will receive three votes, with the top three candidates in each ward being elected to the council chamber -- making 60 councillors in total.The count is on June 10.

The 10,700 electors who make up the Hulton ward appear to be in no mood to make life any easier for the politicians.

For many, the ward election will not be decided by a swing from one party to another, but by whoever is able to reassure residents they can best tackle the growing problem of littering and fly-tipping.

John Blackburn, who lives on Plodder Lane, believes the area has been blighted by youngsters who routinely drop their rubbish on the ground.

He said: "The litter problem is awful. There is too much sloppiness with people dropping things they don't want wherever they go."

Daubhill resident Dorothy Lomax, aged 61, wants the council to tidy-up the streets. She said: "The rubbish is appalling. There are plastic bottles, bags from shops and boxes strewn everywhere.

"The state of some of these corner shops is a disgrace. It gives the area a bad name. Hulton is a nice area to live in but it has gone downhill over the last few years."

In March, residents from Nixon Road, Daubhill, took the initiative in the war against litter louts by organising a team to sweep away rubbish and put garbage into a skip.

They discovered that even larger items -- such as carpet and pieces of furniture -- had been abandoned in the backstreets.

Sue Johnson, who lives of Newbrook Road, claims the problem is equally as bad near her home in Hulton Park.

Mrs Johnson, aged 68, said: "It's a dump round here. Littering gets even worse at night when all the takeaways are open."

But for members of the Methodist Church, on St Helens Road, vandalism and Anti-Social Behaviour are the issues they most want to see tackled. Over recent years the church has suffered repeated attacks and worshippers have been harassed.

Former warden Bert Millington said: "Kids jump on the roof and smash the tiles. We're trying to ward them off by using anti-vandal paint but we're just flogging a dead horse. It looks like a slum sometimes."

The new Hulton ward takes in homes off Newbrook Road and the land running down to the nearby slag heap and across to Great Lever and Farnworth Golf club.

Its northern boundary runs diagonally from the golf club towards Deane along Slackfold Lane, Ellesmere Road and Deane Church Lane.

At Wigan Road, it slops down past Knutshaw Brook and then runs southward along Punch Lane before stopping short of the Salford Council boundary at Hag Fold.

Cllr Harkin admits he is facing the fight of his life if he is to continue in his high-ranking post.

He hopes the council's record of introducing traffic calming and targeting yobs with Anti-Social Behaviour Orders will be enough to keep him in power.

He said: "It is a straight fight between us and Labour - the Liberal Democrats are an irrelevance in Hulton.

"The people of Hulton Park have elected three Tory councillors for 20-odd years and got nothing out of them while Labour councillors in Daubhill are hard-working and have recently introduced road calming measures in Chip Hill and Platt Hill and re-engineered the junction at Four Lane Ends."

But for Conservative councillor Andy Morgan it is Labour's failure to get to grips with crime that gives him hope of success.

He said: "It could go either way but the message we are getting is that people are fed up with Labour.

"Our councillors are experienced and have worked hard to represent people's interests.

"We are fighting to win."

Unsurprisingly, Lib Dem candidate Linden Greensitt is not expecting a two-horse race.

The 35-year-old tax consultant said: "There are many problems here which neither party has dealt with and there could be a real surprise."

The full list of candidates standing in the ward is Phil Ashcroft (Con), Thomas Fitzpatrick (Lab), Micheal Francis (Lab), Linden Greensitt (Lib Dem), Guy Harkin (Lab), Joseph Hayes (Lib Dem), Kieran Alexander McGeehan (Lib Dem), Andy Morgan (Con) and Alan Walsh (Con).

The Bolton Evening News is to give readers the chance to challenge the three main political party leaders. Email or send your short points and questions to gtidman@boltoneveningnews.co.uk or Gareth Tidman, newsroom, Bolton Evening News, Newspaper House, Churchgate, Bolton, BL1 1DE.