1979 Cardiff City Council election

The 1979 Cardiff City Council election was held on Thursday 3 May 1979 to elect councillors to Cardiff District Council (later to become known as Cardiff City Council) in Cardiff, Wales. It took place on the same day as other council elections in the United Kingdom.

The previous Cardiff City Council elections took place in 1976 and the next full elections took place in 1983.

The 1979 election saw the Conservative Party lose their majority to the Labour Party.

Background

199 Candidates from 5 parties ran. 1 Independent also ran in the Riverside ward who was formerly of the Ratepayers Association. Despite being an incumbent Councillor he lost.

The Conservative Party ran a full slate of candidates. The Labour Party ran 69 candidates, Plaid Cymru ran 33 candidates and the Liberal Party ran 19 candidates.^[1]

Results

Contests took place in all except two of the wards at this election.^[1]

Cardiff District Council election result 1979 ^[1]
	Seats	Gains	Losses	Net gain/loss	Seats %	Votes	+/−
Labour	41	13	0	+13	54.7
Conservative	34	1	12	-11	45.3
Liberal	0	0	0	±0.0	0.0
Plaid Cymru	0	0	0	±0.0	0.0
Independent	0	0	2	-2	0.0	1,001	N/A
Communist	0	0	0	±0.0	0.0	128

Ward Results

Adamsdown (3 seats)

Adamsdown^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	D. Evans	2,440	68.4	+8.5
	Labour	J. Jones	2,286
	Labour	D. Ford	2,229
	Conservative	B. Jones	1,129	31.6	−8.5
	Conservative	L. Quinn	916
	Conservative	D. Norman	915
Turnout				33.4	+65.7
Registered electors			5,429
	Labour hold		Swing
	Labour hold		Swing
	Labour hold		Swing

Canton (3 seats)

Canton^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Bella Brown*	2,378	50.9	−11.5
	Labour	J. Donovan	2,292	49.1	+11.5
	Labour	L. Davis	2,007
	Conservative	Trevor Tyrell	1,984
	Conservative	D. Davey	1,888
	Labour	T. Downey	1,861
Turnout				66.3	+23.5
Registered electors			7,046
	Conservative hold		Swing
	Labour gain from Conservative		Swing
	Labour gain from Conservative		Swing

Cathays (3 seats)

Cathays^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Derek Allinson	3,185	47.0	+16.6
	Labour	John Charles Edwards	2,964
	Labour	J. Drysdale	2,928
	Conservative	M. Buckley	2,511	37.1	+8.9
	Conservative	F. Moorcraft	2,374
	Conservative	P. Reynolds	2,363
	Liberal	G. Snell	711	10.5	−1.3
	Liberal	D. Rees	653
	Liberal	J. Ball	629
	Plaid Cymru	T. O'Neill	364	5.4	−6.7
	Plaid Cymru	B. George	318
	Plaid Cymru	G. Tilley	308
Turnout				75.9	+36.4
Registered electors			8,917
	Labour hold		Swing
	Labour hold		Swing
	Labour gain from Conservative		Swing

Central (3 seats)

Central^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	William Herbert	1,683	37.5	+10.6
	Labour	M. Flynn	1,631
	Labour	C. Beach	1,606
	Conservative	D. Marles	1,231	35.2	±0.0
	Conservative	P. Lowes	1,215
	Conservative	J. Miles	1,180
	Liberal	S. Jones	338	9.7	+9.7
	Plaid Cymru	R. Griffiths	247	7.1	−2.1
	Liberal	G. Sagoo	237
	Plaid Cymru	P. Riley
	Plaid Cymru	D. Hopkins	193
	Liberal	M. Ball	37
Turnout				63.1	+15.2
Registered electors			5,545
	Labour hold		Swing
	Labour gain from Conservative		Swing
	Labour gain from Conservative		Swing

Ely (6 seats)

Ely^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	William Carling	6,230	70.1	+17.1
	Labour	A. Buttle	5,855
	Labour	David Seligman	5,664
	Labour	Charlie Gale	5,356
	Labour	N. Jenkins	5,143
	Labour	V. Sloman	5,025
	Conservative	R. Benson	2,651	29.9	−7.0
	Conservative	J. Bushrod	2,532
	Conservative	W. Roberts	2,469
	Conservative	P. Fitzpatrick	2,456
	Conservative	S. Downes	2,424
	Conservative	M. Warren	2,392
Turnout				61.2	+28.3
Registered electors			14,505
	Labour hold		Swing
	Labour hold		Swing
	Labour hold		Swing
	Labour hold		Swing
	Labour hold		Swing
	Labour hold		Swing

Gabalfa (3 seats)

Gabalfa^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Michael Parry	4,157	55.1	+12.1
	Labour	P. Owen	3,974
	Labour	E. Matthewson	3,597
	Conservative	T. Merridew	3,000	39.8	+6.0
	Conservative	C. Saunders	2,831
	Conservative	V. Kempton	2,770
	Plaid Cymru	L. Evans	386	5.1	−6.0
	Plaid Cymru	B. Williams	271
	Plaid Cymru	C. Schoen	213
Turnout				76.1	+27.1
Registered electors			9,911
	Labour gain from Conservative		Swing
	Labour hold		Swing
	Labour gain from Conservative		Swing

Grangetown (3 seats)

Grangetown^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	J. P. O'Reilly	2,529	57.0	+6.9
	Conservative	Gwendoline Judd	2,335
	Conservative	B. Moorcraft	2,315
	Labour	D. Lydiard	2,289	45.3	+2.3
	Labour	P. Duddridge	2,240
	Labour	B. Mainsbridge	2,216
	Plaid Cymru	B. Hoolahan	231	4.6	N/A
	Plaid Cymru	I. Walters	142
	Plaid Cymru	M. Williams	127
Turnout				70.3	+28.5
Registered electors			7,183
	Conservative hold		Swing
	Conservative hold		Swing
	Conservative hold		Swing

Lisvane, Llanedeyrn and St Mellons (1 seat)

Lisvane, Llanedeyrn and St Mellons^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	T. H. Davies	Unopposed
Turnout			0	0.0	N/A
Registered electors			3,037
	Conservative hold		Swing

Llandaff (3 seats)

Llandaff^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	H. Ferguson-James	3,954	58.1	−9.0
	Conservative	M. Jones	3,722
	Conservative	J. Hermer	3,677
	Labour	C. Lewis	1,960	28.8	+12.9
	Labour	G. Rhoden	1,802
	Plaid Cymru	G. Bowman	896	13.2	−6.9
Turnout				49.1	+26.1
Registered electors			9,054
	Conservative hold		Swing
	Conservative hold		Swing
	Conservative hold		Swing

Llanishen (6 seats)

Llanishen^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	C. Milson	5,952	35.4	+13.3
	Conservative	Ronald Watkiss	5,814
	Conservative	L. Smith	5,813
	Conservative	A. Lewis	5,658
	Conservative	D. Thomas	5,636
	Conservative	G. Tatham	5,556
	Labour	A. Brown	3,402	11.3	+16.5
	Labour	A. Davies	3,373
	Labour	H. Howell	3,301
	Labour	B. Williams	3,284
	Labour	S. Jeans	3,191
	Labour	E. Williams	2,029
	Liberal	C. Pearcy	2,015	16.5	+3.9
	Plaid Cymru	R. Edwards	848	6.9	−1.4
	Plaid Cymru	S. Doyle	820
	Plaid Cymru	J. May	722
Turnout				90.5	+12.4
Registered electors			13,504
	Conservative hold		Swing
	Conservative hold		Swing
	Conservative hold		Swing
	Conservative hold		Swing
	Conservative hold		Swing
	Conservative gain from Ratepayers		Swing

Penylan (6 seats)

Penylan^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	A. Austin	10,159	51.5	−13.8
	Conservative	R. Hennessy	10,114
	Conservative	Stefan Terlezki	10,100
	Conservative	M. Newman	10,060
	Conservative	A. John	10,039
	Conservative	A. Thomas	9,402
	Labour	G. Thomas	5,317	26.9	+12.9
	Labour	S. Caesar	4,953
	Labour	M. Edwards	4,921
	Labour	P. Williams	4,916
	Labour	L. Green	4,658
	Liberal	P. Davies	3,129	15.8	+1.7
	Liberal	J. Jones	2,990
	Liberal	D. Hill	2,961
	Liberal	P. Linsey	2,735
	Liberal	C. Mitchell	2,548
	Liberal	A. Reeves	2,386
	Plaid Cymru	E. Bush	1,138	5.8	−0.8
	Plaid Cymru	B. Hughes	1,084
	Plaid Cymru	A. Couch	1,077
	Plaid Cymru	A. Morgan	1,060
	Plaid Cymru	C. Lake	1,003
	Plaid Cymru	I. Howells	970
Turnout				77.2	+28.6
Registered electors			25,568
	Conservative hold		Swing
	Conservative hold		Swing
	Conservative hold		Swing
	Conservative hold		Swing
	Conservative hold		Swing
	Conservative hold		Swing

Plasmawr (6 seats)

Plasmawr^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	D. O'Driscoll	5,201	52.6	+13.2
	Labour	F. Tyrrell	5,152
	Labour	M. Phillips	5,044
	Labour	M. Longden	4,965
	Labour	D. Evans	4,883
	Labour	B. Shorten	4,808
	Conservative	B. Hall	3,454	39.0	+14.0
	Conservative	D. Davies	3,331
	Conservative	A. Trott	3,259
	Conservative	W. Jones	3,201
	Conservative	H. Derrick	3,141
	Conservative	E. McAuliffe	3,139
	Plaid Cymru	D. Davies	1,228	21.6	−9.2
Turnout				37.2	+30.9
Registered electors			14,519
	Labour hold		Swing
	Labour gain from Conservative		Swing
	Labour gain from Conservative		Swing
	Labour hold		Swing
	Labour gain from Conservative		Swing
	Labour hold		Swing

Plasnewydd (3 seats)

Plasnewydd^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Olwen Watkin	2,517	40.0	−0.2
	Conservative	S. James	2,325
	Conservative	D. J. Evans	2,258
	Labour	C. Richards	2,097	33.3	+7.6
	Labour	C. Robinson	1,848
	Labour	S. Khan	1,621
	Liberal	G. German	1,022	16.2	+9.4
	Liberal	P. Jarman	719
	Plaid Cymru	Owen John Thomas	654	10.4	−7.2
	Liberal	P. Brightman	629
	Plaid Cymru	G. Rees	377
	Plaid Cymru	D. Bianchi	325
Turnout				75.2	+29.0
Registered electors			8,368
	Conservative hold		Swing
	Conservative hold		Swing
	Conservative hold		Swing

Radyr, St Fagans, Tongwynlais (2 seats)

Radyr, St Fagans, Tongwynlais^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	L. B. Clarke	Unopposed
	Conservative	G. W. Millard	Unopposed
Turnout			0	0.0	N/A
Registered electors			5,197
	Conservative hold		Swing
	Conservative hold		Swing

Rhiwbina (3 seats)

Rhiwbina^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	William John A. Bain	5,650	67.3	+8.5
	Conservative	G. Jones	5,561
	Conservative	G. Neale	5,549
	Labour	D. Rees	1,934	11.8	+11.2
	Labour	E. Woolfe	1,933
	Labour	R. Woolfe	1,779
	Plaid Cymru	D. Davies	817	14.7	−5.0
	Plaid Cymru	R. Williams	611
Turnout				80.1	+25.4
Registered electors			10,493
	Conservative hold		Swing
	Conservative hold		Swing
	Conservative hold		Swing

Riverside (3 seats)

Riverside^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	W. Walker	2,231	40.9	+22.0
	Labour	J. McCarthy	1,983
	Labour	A. Verma	1,830
	Conservative	S. Doxsey	1,814	33.3	−6.3
	Conservative	R. De Souza	1,789
	Conservative	F. McAndrews	1,534
	Independent	D. Mathias	1,001	18.4	N/A
	Plaid Cymru	G. Arthur	405	7.4	−1.6
Turnout				72.9	+18.5
Registered electors			7,476
	Labour gain from Conservative		Swing
	Labour gain from Ratepayers		Swing
	Labour gain from Conservative		Swing

Roath (3 seats)

Roath^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	N. Lloyd-Edwards	4,677	62.7	+3.7
	Conservative	C. Hutchings	4,563
	Conservative	Gerald Brinks	4,393
	Labour	T. Tucker	2,784	37.3	+20.2
	Labour	N. Davies	2,426
	Labour	R. Rees	2,288
Turnout				72.9	+30.9
Registered electors			10,228
	Conservative hold		Swing
	Conservative hold		Swing
	Conservative hold		Swing

Rumney (6 seats)

Rumney^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	M. Llewellyn	8,581	52.7	+11.7
	Labour	B. Drew	7,494
	Labour	D. English	7,435
	Labour	Alun Michael	7,403
	Labour	John Randall Phillips	7,348
	Labour	John Reynolds	7,281
	Conservative	I. Davies	4,752	31.5	+4.1
	Conservative	A. McCarthy	4,705
	Conservative	P. Thomas	4,654
	Conservative	M. Battista	4,597
	Conservative	T. Jose	4,532
	Conservative	P. Nicholson	4,394
Turnout				70.1	+28.1
Registered electors			19,012
	Labour hold		Swing
	Labour hold		Swing
	Labour hold		Swing
	Labour hold		Swing
	Labour hold		Swing
	Labour hold		Swing

South (3 seats)

South^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Philip Dunleavy	2,616	56.1	+3.6
	Labour	J. Smith	2,510
	Labour	P. H. Bowen	2,312
	Conservative	E. Williams	1,475	43.9	−10.3
	Conservative	F. Arnold	1,378
	Conservative	K. Williams	1,228
	Plaid Cymru	E. Roberts	165	3.8	N/A
	Plaid Cymru	D. Harris	149
	Communist	S. Richards	128	2.9	N/A
Turnout				69.6	+31.3
Registered electors			6,298
	Labour hold		Swing
	Labour hold		Swing
	Labour hold		Swing

Splott (3 seats)

Splott^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	D. Ormonde	3,393	64.5	+22.6
	Labour	E. Price	3,027
	Labour	J. Southern	2,793
	Conservative	A. Kelly	1,866	35.5	+6.8
	Conservative	F. Chichester	1,788
	Conservative	R. James	1,682
Turnout				74.1	+26.6
Registered electors			7,096
	Labour hold		Swing
	Labour hold		Swing
	Labour hold		Swing

Whitchurch (3 seats)

Whitchurch^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	T. Davies	4,413	53.8	+3.5
	Conservative	W. Griffiths	4,359
	Conservative	Victor Riley	4,299
	Labour	W. Davies	2,374	28.9	+9.4
	Labour	T. Crews	2,266
	Labour	T. James	2,151
	Liberal	P. O'Brien	1,021	12.4	+0.9
	Liberal	S. Soffa	829
	Liberal	C. Webb	780
	Plaid Cymru	H. Pritchard-Jones	393	4.8	−13.8
	Plaid Cymru	I. Williams	358
Turnout				70.3	+9.9
Registered electors			10,221
	Conservative hold		Swing
	Conservative hold		Swing
	Conservative hold		Swing

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l ^m ⁿ ^o ^p ^q ^r ^s ^t ^u ^v ^w ^x "Cardiff Welsh District Council Election Results 1973-1991" (PDF). The Elections Centre (Plymouth University). Retrieved 24 April 2020.

[Elections_Centre-1] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l ^m ⁿ ^o ^p ^q ^r ^s ^t ^u ^v ^w ^x "Cardiff Welsh District Council Election Results 1973-1991" (PDF). The Elections Centre (Plymouth University). Retrieved 24 April 2020.

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