The 2008 Harlow District Council election took place on 1 May 2008 to elect members of Harlow District Council in Essex, England. One third of the council was up for election and the Conservative party gained overall control of the council from no overall control.[1]
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11 of the 33 seats to Harlow District Council 17 seats needed for a majority | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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![]() Map showing the results of contested wards in the 2008 Harlow District Council elections. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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After the election, including the delayed election in Harlow Common, the composition of the council was
Background
editAfter the last election in 2007 both the Conservative and Labour parties had 12 seats, the Liberal Democrats had 8 and there was 1 independent councillor.[3] However, in October 2007 the Conservatives gained a seat from Labour in Toddbrook to move to 13 seats, while Labour dropped to 11.[4]
Before the election the council was run by a coalition between Labour and the Liberal Democrats,[5] which had held power in Harlow since 2004.[6] Among the councillors to stand down at the election were Liberal Democrat Su Lawton of Staple Tye ward and independent, former Conservative, John Paul Goddard of Sumners and Kingsmoor.[7]
The election in Harlow Common ward was delayed until 12 June 2008,[8] after the death of Labour councillor Gregory Peck in April 2008.[9]
Election result
editThe Conservatives gained a majority on the council after gaining 5 seats on the day of the May election, while Labour lost 4 seats.[10] The Conservatives took seats from Labour in Little Parndon and Hare Street and Toddbrook, from the Liberal Democrats in Netteswell and Staple Tye and from an independent in Sumners and Kingsmoor.[11] This meant the Conservatives took 8 of the 10 seats contested and finished the day with 18 councillors.[11]
Labour failed to win any seats and dropped to 6 councillors after also losing 2 seats to the Liberal Democrats.[11] The Liberal Democrat gains from Labour came in Bush Fair and Mark Hall wards and meant they stayed on 8 councillors.[11] Overall turnout at the election was 33.80%, down from 34.75% at the 2007 election.[8]
The delayed election in Harlow Common took place on 12 June 2008 and the Conservatives gained another seat from Labour with a majority of 331 votes.[6] This increased the Conservative's majority on the council to 5 seats, with them having 19 of the 33 councillors.[6]
Party | Seats | Gains | Losses | Net gain/loss | Seats % | Votes % | Votes | +/− | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | 9 | 6 | 0 | 6 | 81.8 | 50.9 | 10,372 | 5.1 | |
Liberal Democrats | 2 | 2 | 2 | 18.2 | 20.8 | 4,238 | 0.6 | ||
Labour | 0 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 27.4 | 5,582 | 4.5 | |
UKIP | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.6 | 115 | 0.6 | ||
Independent | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0.3 | 53 | 0.6 |
The above totals include the delayed election in Harlow Common on 12 June 2008.
Ward results
editBush Fair
editParty | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Liberal Democrats | Manny Doku | 860 | 41.6 | +0.2 | |
Labour | Terry Brandon | 652 | 31.6 | −6.9 | |
Conservative | Michelle Dorling | 554 | 26.8 | +6.8 | |
Majority | 208 | 10.0 | +7.1 | ||
Turnout | 2,066 | 36.2 | −0.3 | ||
Liberal Democrats gain from Labour | Swing |
Church Langley
editParty | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Simon Carter | 1,366 | 76.4 | ||
Labour | Ken Lawrie | 259 | 14.5 | ||
Liberal Democrats | Laura Rideout | 164 | 9.2 | ||
Majority | 1,107 | 61.9 | |||
Turnout | 1,789 | 28.3 | +0.4 | ||
Conservative hold | Swing |
Great Parndon
editParty | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Eddie Johnson | 1,164 | 63.8 | +8.7 | |
Labour | Norman Knight | 478 | 26.2 | −7.4 | |
Liberal Democrats | Aran Black | 182 | 10.0 | −1.3 | |
Majority | 686 | 37.6 | +16.1 | ||
Turnout | 1,824 | 35.2 | −0.9 | ||
Conservative hold | Swing |
Little Parndon and Hare Street
editParty | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Shona Johnson | 829 | 48.8 | +9.7 | |
Labour | Mike Danvers | 708 | 41.6 | −7.6 | |
Liberal Democrats | Kuzna Jackson | 163 | 9.6 | −2.2 | |
Majority | 121 | 7.2 | −2.9 | ||
Turnout | 1,700 | 31.7 | −2.3 | ||
Conservative gain from Labour | Swing |
Mark Hall
editParty | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Liberal Democrats | Nick Macy | 744 | 36.8 | +0.3 | |
Conservative | Jane Steer | 681 | 33.6 | +6.0 | |
Labour | Sean Folan | 599 | 29.6 | −6.3 | |
Majority | 63 | 3.2 | +2.6 | ||
Turnout | 2,024 | 39.9 | −1.2 | ||
Liberal Democrats gain from Labour | Swing |
Netteswell
editParty | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Mark Gough | 681 | 35.6 | +2.4 | |
Liberal Democrats | Ian Jackson | 579 | 30.2 | −1.9 | |
Labour | Dennis Palmer | 540 | 28.2 | −6.5 | |
UKIP | Daniel Balding | 115 | 6.0 | +6.0 | |
Majority | 102 | 5.4 | |||
Turnout | 1,915 | 35.7 | +0.8 | ||
Conservative gain from Liberal Democrats | Swing |
Old Harlow
editParty | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Muriel Jolles | 1,129 | 65.4 | +10.9 | |
Labour | Paul Sztumpf | 373 | 21.6 | −0.6 | |
Liberal Democrats | Simon Macneill | 225 | 13.0 | +1.1 | |
Majority | 756 | 43.8 | +11.5 | ||
Turnout | 1,727 | 33.9 | −3.3 | ||
Conservative hold | Swing |
Staple Tye
editParty | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | David Kirton | 848 | 50.6 | +7.8 | |
Liberal Democrats | John Strachan | 556 | 33.2 | −3.5 | |
Labour | Janice Fenny | 272 | 16.2 | −4.3 | |
Majority | 292 | 17.4 | +11.3 | ||
Turnout | 1,676 | 32.3 | +0.5 | ||
Conservative gain from Liberal Democrats | Swing |
Sumners and Kingsmoor
editParty | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Russell Perrin | 1,097 | 65.3 | +9.8 | |
Labour | Sue Ennifer | 406 | 24.2 | −7.0 | |
Liberal Democrats | Tim Sanderson | 176 | 10.5 | −2.8 | |
Majority | 691 | 41.1 | +16.8 | ||
Turnout | 1,679 | 30.8 | +1.7 | ||
Conservative gain from Independent | Swing |
Toddbrook
editParty | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Joel Charles | 1,064 | 56.0 | +16.2 | |
Labour | Bob Hickey | 667 | 35.1 | −5.9 | |
Liberal Democrats | Julian Watkiss | 170 | 8.9 | +2.6 | |
Majority | 397 | 20.9 | |||
Turnout | 1,901 | 36.4 | −1.0 | ||
Conservative gain from Labour | Swing |
Harlow Common delayed election
editParty | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Clive Souter | 959 | 46.6 | +3.1 | |
Labour | Norman Knight | 628 | 30.5 | −14.5 | |
Liberal Democrats | James Rideout | 419 | 20.3 | +8.7 | |
Independent | Jim Pailing | 53 | 2.6 | +2.6 | |
Majority | 331 | 16.1 | |||
Turnout | 2,059 | 37.2 | −0.4 | ||
Conservative gain from Labour | Swing |
By-elections between 2008 and 2010
editA by-election was held in Staple Tye on 30 April 2009 after councillor David Kirton was disqualified for not attending any meetings for 6 months. David Kirton had been elected as a Conservative, but was suspended from the party in October 2008 after being charged by police and was then an independent councillor.[12][13]
The seat was gained for the Liberal Democrats by John Strachan with a majority of 60 votes over the Conservatives.[13]
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Liberal Democrats | John Strachan | 604 | 39.1 | +5.9 | |
Conservative | Lorriane Caldarella | 544 | 35.3 | −15.3 | |
Labour | Dennis Palmer | 329 | 21.3 | +5.1 | |
UKIP | Daniel Balding | 66 | 4.3 | +4.3 | |
Majority | 60 | 3.9 | |||
Turnout | 1,543 | 30 | −2 | ||
Liberal Democrats gain from Independent | Swing |
References
edit- ^ "Harlow". BBC News Online. 2 May 2008. Retrieved 1 January 2015.
- ^ a b "Harlow Common Ward Election Result". Harlow District Council. Archived from the original on 18 February 2012. Retrieved 1 January 2015.
- ^ "Harlow". BBC News Online. 3 May 2007. Retrieved 2 January 2015.
- ^ "Harlow Council By Election Results October 2007". Harlow District Council. Archived from the original on 18 February 2012. Retrieved 2 January 2015.
- ^ Andalo, Debbie (23 April 2008). "Harlow : Where else can I go?". The Guardian. NewsBank.
- ^ a b c "Tories win by-election". Harlow Star. 13 June 2008. Retrieved 2 January 2015.
- ^ Wilkinson, Ben (31 March 2008). "Councillors to step down". Harlow Star. Retrieved 2 January 2015.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m "Harlow Council Election Results 2008". Harlow District Council. Archived from the original on 11 February 2012. Retrieved 1 January 2015.
- ^ "Harlow Council election candidates". Harlow Star. 7 April 2008. Retrieved 2 January 2015.
- ^ "Brown admits fall to third place amounts to 'bad night' for Labour". The Guardian. NewsBank. 2 May 2008.
- ^ a b c d Jensen, Isabel (2 May 2008). "Harlow: Conservatives sweep to power in "disastrous" night for Labour". Bishops Stortford Citizen. Archived from the original on 4 July 2008. Retrieved 2 January 2015.
- ^ "Update: Tory party suspends councillor". Harlow Herald. 14 October 2008. Retrieved 1 January 2015.
- ^ a b c "Harlow: Lib Dems narrowly beat Conservatives in Staple Tye by-election". Harlow Herald. 1 May 2009. Retrieved 1 January 2015.