1994 Leeds City Council election

The Leeds City Council elections were held on Thursday, 5 May 1994, with one third of the council up for election, alongside a vacancy in the University ward.

Differing wildly from the previous election, the results were reminiscent of Labour's landslide in the 1990 election, often producing enormous swings. Although falling short of their 1990 vote, Labour were able to win just as comfortably, helped by a significant collapse in Conservative support to a party low and third place in vote. The Lib Dems, who had also suffered a sharp reduction in vote at the last election, gained their highest vote since the merger, and surpassed the Conservatives for the first time. The scale of the Conservative defeat seen another first with their ousting into fourth place in a number of wards by the Liberals and Greens - the latter receiving their strongest result yet, winning just under a fifth of the vote in Wortley.

With the seats last fought at the 1990 election, where the Labour tide had swept everywhere but the northern Conservative-Lib Dem heartlands, Labour's nearest attempt at a gain was found in Roundhay, with the party narrowing the Tory majority there to just 564 votes. The Lib Dems came closest, but despite running the Conservatives close in North ward and Labour in Pudsey South and Weetwood, they were unable to capitalise and steal a fourth seat. As a result, there were no change in seats.^[1]

Election result

Leeds Local Election Result 1994
	Seats	Seats %	Votes %	Votes	+/−
Labour	27	79.4	51.3	105,685	+12.9%
Conservative	4	11.8	22.0	45,232	-18.7%
Liberal Democrats	3	8.8	24.1	49,595	+8.0%
Green	0	0.0	1.9	3,861	-0.4%
Liberal	0	0.0	0.7	1,400	-0.1%

This result has the following consequences for the total number of seats on the council after the elections:

Party		Previous council	New council
	Labour	67	67
	Conservative	23	23
	Liberal Democrat	8	8
	Independent	1	1
Total		99	99
Working majority		35	35

Ward results

Aireborough^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	M. Dunn	4,168	47.2	+15.9
	Conservative	G. Latty	2,594	29.4	−21.8
	Liberal Democrats	J. Brown	2,060	23.4	+7.9
Majority			1,574	17.8	−2.1
Turnout			8,822
	Labour hold		Swing	+18.8

Armley^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	A. Lowe	3,169	61.0	+8.9
	Liberal	G. Lawson	773	14.9	+3.7
	Liberal Democrats	D. Marsay-Smith	645	12.4	+4.6
	Conservative	P. Rayner	608	11.7	−14.1
Majority			2,396	46.1	+19.8
Turnout			5,195
	Labour hold		Swing	+2.6

Barwick & Kippax^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	J. Parker	5,184	64.2	+14.1
	Conservative	C. Ward	1,799	22.3	−19.5
	Liberal Democrats	D. Lindley	1,088	13.5	+5.4
Majority			3,385	41.9	+33.7
Turnout			8,071
	Labour hold		Swing	+16.8

Beeston^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	J. Trickett	2,962	70.1	+14.5
	Conservative	H. Woodhead	663	15.7	−17.3
	Liberal Democrats	S. Scott	603	14.3	+2.8
Majority			2,299	54.4	+31.8
Turnout			4,228
	Labour hold		Swing	+15.9

Bramley^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	D. Atkinson	3,685	72.4	+12.0
	Liberal Democrats	N. Amor	617	12.1	+6.0
	Conservative	M. Best	477	9.4	−13.9
	Liberal	C. Pearson	311	6.1	−1.0
Majority			3,068	60.3	+23.2
Turnout			5,090
	Labour hold		Swing	+3.0

Burmantofts^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	C. Martin	2,784	54.8	+12.9
	Liberal Democrats	K. Norman	2,127	41.9	−8.5
	Conservative	G. Castle	165	3.3	−4.4
Majority			657	12.9	+4.5
Turnout			5,076
	Labour hold		Swing	+10.7

Chapel Allerton^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	N. Taggart	3,604	66.0	+7.7
	Conservative	I. Baxter	856	15.7	−13.2
	Liberal Democrats	M. Hashmi	653	12.0	+3.9
	Green	E. Jackson	351	6.4	+1.6
Majority			2,748	50.3	+20.9
Turnout			5,464
	Labour hold		Swing	+10.4

City & Holbeck^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	C. Myers	3,206	74.2	+8.2
	Conservative	D. Boynton	389	9.0	−8.9
	Liberal Democrats	D. Pratt	343	7.9	−2.8
	Liberal	N. Nowosielski	199	4.6	+4.6
	Green	D. Blakemore	184	4.3	−1.1
Majority			2,817	65.2	+17.1
Turnout			4,321
	Labour hold		Swing	+8.5

Cookridge^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	J. Carter	3,016	41.0	−22.6
	Labour	A. Procter	2,185	29.7	+11.7
	Liberal Democrats	K. Whelan	2,147	29.2	+12.9
Majority			831	11.3	−34.3
Turnout			7,348
	Conservative hold		Swing	-17.1

Garforth & Swillington^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	A. Groves	5,235	65.7	+17.4
	Conservative	J. Stott	1,455	18.3	−24.3
	Liberal Democrats	R. Hutchinson	1,277	16.0	+6.9
Majority			3,780	47.4	+41.6
Turnout			7,967
	Labour hold		Swing	+20.8

Halton^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	L. Benson	3,643	50.4	+20.3
	Conservative	W. Birch	2,406	33.3	−25.5
	Liberal Democrats	A. Appleyard	1,185	16.4	+8.0
Majority			1,237	17.1	−11.5
Turnout			7,234
	Labour hold		Swing	+22.9

Harehills^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	T. Ali	2,924	68.0	+3.8
	Liberal Democrats	R. Senior	665	15.5	+5.1
	Conservative	T. Gerrard	516	12.0	−7.8
	Green	A. Tear	198	4.6	−1.0
Majority			2,259	52.5	+8.1
Turnout			4,303
	Labour hold		Swing	-0.6

Headingley^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	P. Truswell	3,296	59.7	+11.9
	Liberal Democrats	B. Thompson	1,132	20.5	+2.9
	Conservative	J. Mortimer	682	12.4	−14.4
	Green	P. Alexander	410	7.4	−0.4
Majority			2,164	39.2	+18.2
Turnout			5,520
	Labour hold		Swing	+4.5

Horsforth^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal Democrats	C. Townsley	4,469	55.2	+18.2
	Conservative	R. Whitehead	2,115	26.1	−24.6
	Labour	I. Coulthard	1,510	18.7	+9.1
Majority			2,354	29.1	+15.4
Turnout			8,094
	Liberal Democrats hold		Swing	+21.4

Hunslet^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	M. Davies	2,916	81.7	+5.6
	Liberal Democrats	G. Melnick	348	9.7	+3.4
	Conservative	A. Larvin	306	8.6	−9.0
Majority			2,568	71.9	+13.3
Turnout			3,570
	Labour hold		Swing	+1.1

Kirkstall^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Bernard Atha	3,708	69.5	+11.1
	Liberal Democrats	S. Harrison	661	12.4	+12.4
	Green	A. Mander	559	10.5	+2.0
	Conservative	F. McKimmings	405	7.6	−17.9
Majority			3,047	57.1	+24.2
Turnout			5,333
	Labour hold		Swing	-0.6

Middleton^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	L. Middleton	3,378	77.6	+11.6
	Liberal Democrats	Q. Brown	525	12.1	+2.1
	Conservative	D. Jowett	452	10.4	−13.6
Majority			2,853	65.5	+23.5
Turnout			4,355
	Labour hold		Swing	+4.7

Moortown^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal Democrats	W. Winlow	4,164	57.8	+8.5
	Conservative	J. Dagwell	1,533	21.3	−14.0
	Labour	M. Hussein	1,505	20.9	+7.1
Majority			2,631	36.5	+22.4
Turnout			7,202
	Liberal Democrats hold		Swing	+11.2

Morley North^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	F. Jones	3,964	57.4	+16.4
	Conservative	C. Halpin	1,966	28.5	−24.0
	Liberal Democrats	M. Ewens	974	14.1	+7.6
Majority			1,998	28.9	+17.5
Turnout			6,904
	Labour hold		Swing	+20.2

Morley South^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	S. Bradley	3,990	58.0	+8.7
	Liberal Democrats	T. Leadley	1,906	27.7	+14.2
	Conservative	L. Frost	985	14.3	−21.0
Majority			2,084	30.3	+16.4
Turnout			6,881
	Labour hold		Swing	-2.7

North^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	R. Manning	2,535	38.8	−18.5
	Liberal Democrats	S. Umpleby	2,090	32.0	+4.5
	Labour	J. Sully	1,765	27.0	+11.9
	Green	P. Harris	138	2.1	+2.1
Majority			445	6.8	−23.1
Turnout			6,528
	Conservative hold		Swing	-11.5

Otley & Wharfedale^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal Democrats	C. Campbell	3,503	39.3	+11.6
	Conservative	J. Bird	2,803	31.4	−22.9
	Labour	J. Eveleigh	2,500	28.0	+10.0
	Liberal	A. St. Quintin	117	1.3	+1.3
Majority			700	7.8	−18.8
Turnout			8,923
	Liberal Democrats hold		Swing	+17.2

Pudsey North^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	J. Harper	3,495	42.7	+20.3
	Conservative	C. Holmes	2,506	30.6	−30.7
	Liberal Democrats	R. Cam	2,184	26.7	+12.4
Majority			989	12.1	−26.8
Turnout			8,185
	Labour hold		Swing	+25.5

Pudsey South^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	R. Lewis	3,267	46.7	+24.2
	Liberal Democrats	J. Heppell	2,796	39.9	+34.1
	Conservative	G. Winnard	936	13.4	−9.6
Majority			471	6.7	−17.6
Turnout			6,999
	Labour hold		Swing	-4.9

Richmond Hill^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	E. McGee	3,359	77.8	+6.3
	Liberal Democrats	S. Fisher	623	14.4	+4.0
	Conservative	A. Rhodes	338	7.8	−8.0
Majority			2,736	63.3	+7.7
Turnout			4,320
	Labour hold		Swing	+1.1

Rothwell^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	A. Hudson	3,666	65.0	+10.5
	Liberal Democrats	M. Galdas	1,087	19.3	+1.4
	Conservative	A. Heeson	889	15.8	−12.0
Majority			2,579	45.7	+19.0
Turnout			5,642
	Labour hold		Swing	+4.5

Roundhay^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	J. White	2,889	39.1	−18.8
	Labour	J. Akhtar	2,347	31.7	+9.7
	Liberal Democrats	J. Sefton	1,958	26.5	+10.0
	Green	M. Lorrimer-Roberts	204	2.8	+2.8
Majority			542	7.3	−28.5
Turnout			7,398
	Conservative hold		Swing	-14.2

Seacroft^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	A. Vollans	3,693	83.6	+6.6
	Liberal Democrats	P. Young	403	9.1	+2.7
	Conservative	R. Jones	322	7.3	−9.3
Majority			3,290	74.5	+14.2
Turnout			4,418
	Labour hold		Swing	+1.9

University^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	B. Dale	2,662	63.5	+2.3
	Labour	G. Harper	2,283
	Liberal Democrats	A. Norman	593	14.1	+3.3
	Green	A. Begg	551	13.1	+2.8
	Liberal Democrats	J. Spencer	415
	Conservative	E. Mann	385	9.2	−8.4
	Conservative	R. Winfield	317
Majority			1,690	49.4	+5.8
Turnout			4,191
	Labour hold		Swing
	Labour hold		Swing	-0.5

Weetwood^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	E. Moxon	3,084	40.4	+13.0
	Liberal Democrats	J. Ewens	2,654	34.8	+11.4
	Conservative	J. Hamilton	1,893	24.8	−21.3
Majority			430	5.6	−13.0
Turnout			7,631
	Labour hold		Swing	+0.8

Wetherby^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	J. Procter	4,493	50.2	−24.3
	Liberal Democrats	A. Beck	2,634	29.4	+18.3
	Labour	R. Steel	1,827	20.4	+5.9
Majority			1,859	20.8	−39.1
Turnout			8,954
	Conservative hold		Swing	-21.3

Whinmoor^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	M. Hemingway	3,326	63.9	+17.0
	Conservative	W. Hanbury	1,117	21.4	−18.6
	Liberal Democrats	G. Roberts	766	14.7	+1.6
Majority			2,209	42.4	+35.5
Turnout			5,209
	Labour hold		Swing	+17.8

Wortley^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	M. Bedford	3,678	57.5	+10.0
	Green	D. Blackburn	1,266	19.8	+12.3
	Conservative	A. Carter	738	11.5	−20.4
	Liberal Democrats	S. Buckingham	715	11.2	+3.8
Majority			2,412	37.7	+22.1
Turnout			6,397
	Labour hold		Swing	-1.1

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 ^y ^z ^aa ^ab ^ac ^ad ^ae ^af ^ag ^ah "District results: Leeds". The Yorkshire Post. 6 May 1994.

[results-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 ^y ^z ^aa ^ab ^ac ^ad ^ae ^af ^ag ^ah "District results: Leeds". The Yorkshire Post. 6 May 1994.

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