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2012 North Ayrshire Council election

The 2012 North Ayrshire Council election took place on 3 May 2012 to elect members of North Ayrshire Council. The election used the eight wards created as a result of the Local Governance (Scotland) Act 2004, with each ward electing three or four councillors using the single transferable vote system form of proportional representation, with 30 Councillors being elected.

2012 North Ayrshire Council election
← 2007 3 May 2012 (2012-05-03) 2017 →
All 30 seats to North Ayrshire Council
16 seats needed for a majority
  First party Second party Third party
 
SNP
Lab
Ind
Leader William Gibson David O'Neill Jean Highgate
Party SNP Labour Independent
Leader's seat Saltcoats and Stevenston Irvine West Kilbirnie and Beith
Last election 8 seats, 26.7% 12 seats, 40.0% 5 seats, 16.7%
Seats before 8 12 6
Seats won 12 11 6
Seat change Increase 4 Decrease 1 Increase 1
Popular vote 14,623 12,906 7,808
Percentage 35.6% 31.4% 19.0%
Swing Increase 6.1 Decrease 1.0 Increase 2.1
Council Leader before election

David O'Neill
(Labour)
No overall control

Council Leader after election

William Gibson
(SNP)
No overall control

The election saw the Scottish National Party make further advances by gaining four seats to become the largest party on the Council while also increasing their vote share significantly. Labour lost one seat to become the second-largest party on the Council. Independents gained a seat to have a total of six members. The Conservatives lost two-thirds of their former seats, while the Liberal Democrats were wiped out, losing both their seats.

Following the election, the SNP formed a minority administration on the Council. This replaced the previous Labour minority administration which existed from 2007 to 2012. This was also the first time Labour had not been part of the administration on the council for over 30 years.

Election result

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2012 North Ayrshire Council election result
Party Seats Gains Losses Net gain/loss Seats % Votes % Votes +/−
  SNP 12 4 0   4 40.0 35.6 14,623   6.1
  Labour 11 0 1   1 36.7 31.4 12,906   1.0
  Independent 6 2 1   1 20.0 19.0 7,808   2.1
  Conservative 1 0 2   2 3.3 9.3 3,834   4.1
  Liberal Democrats 0 0 2   2 0.0 1.6 655   5.1
  Socialist Labour 0 0 0   0.0 1.1 443   0.6
  Scottish Socialist 0 0 0   0.0 0.9 378   0.4
  UKIP 0 0 0   0.0 0.5 221 New
  Scottish Senior Citizens 0 0 0   0.0 0.4 163 New
  TUSC 0 0 0   0.0 0.1 51 New
Total 30 41,082

Source: [1]

Note: "Votes" are the first preference votes. The net gain/loss and percentage changes relate to the result of the previous Scottish local elections on 3 May 2007. This may differ from other published sources showing gain/loss relative to seats held at dissolution of Scotland's councils.

Ward results

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Irvine West

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Labour (2) and the SNP (1) retained the seats they had won at the previous election while the SNP gained one seat from the Conservatives.

Irvine West - 4 seats
Party Candidate FPv% Count
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
SNP Matthew Brown (incumbent) 31.6 1,624                
Labour Ian Clarkson (incumbent) 26.8 1,374                
Labour David O'Neill (incumbent) 13.5 691 720 950 958 995 1,039      
Conservative Pat McPhee (incumbent) 12.0 614 634 652 653 657 682 683 773  
SNP Ruth Maguire[note 1] 5.2 265 695 704 713 730 769 770 840 945
Liberal Democrats Gordon Bain 4.8 246 272 283 289 300 330 331    
Independent Derek Owen 3.6 187 197 202 216 231        
Socialist Labour Bobby Cochrane 1.6 81 92 112 123          
TUSC Ian Kerr 1.0 51 61 65            
Electorate: 14,793   Valid: 5,133   Spoilt: 157   Quota: 1,027   Turnout: 34.7%  

Source: [3]

Irvine East

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Labour (2) and the SNP (1) retained the seats they had won at the previous election while the SNP gained one seat from the Liberal Democrats.

Irvine East - 4 seats
Party Candidate FPv% Count
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
SNP Joan Sturgeon (incumbent) 20.6 1,045                  
SNP Marie Burns 18.1 917 941 941 960 998 1,039        
Labour Irene Oldfather 15.0 763 764 766 782 819 851 854 1,032    
Labour John Easdale 12.7 643 643 645 652 673 697 700 874 886 1,098
Independent Tom Barr (incumbent) 10.6 537 538 542 558 604 742 746 763 765  
Labour David Logan 8.1 413 413 415 428 445 452 454      
Conservative Chris Barr 7.4 377 377 377 377 409          
Liberal Democrats Ruby Kirkwood (incumbent) 5.2 263 263 263 267            
Scottish Socialist Denise Morton 1.7 89 89 98              
Socialist Labour James McDaid 0.5 27 27                
Electorate: 14,994   Valid: 5,074   Spoilt: 116   Quota: 1,015   Turnout: 33.8%  

Source: [4]

Kilwinning

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Labour (2) and the SNP (1) retained the seats they had won at the previous election while independent candidate Robert Steel gained a seat from the Liberal Democrats.

Kilwinning - 4 seats
Party Candidate FPv% Count
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11
SNP John Ferguson (incumbent) 29.2 1,440                    
Labour Joe Cullinane 21.3 1,054                    
Independent Robert Steel 14.1 695 720 722 735 754 771 946 966 1,092    
Labour Donald Reid 10.6 525 533 548 548 557 559 590 867 909 929 1,012
Conservative Scott Gallacher 7.3 363 369 370 372 373 385 398 407      
Labour Helen Hainey 5.6 279 295 335 337 341 352 373        
Independent Colin Hedley 5.1 254 268 270 293 299 319          
SNP Iain Walker 3.0 148 489 490 490 501 511 532 547 568 581  
Liberal Democrats Stuart Gardiner 1.7 82 88 90 90 90            
Scottish Socialist Andy Jones 1.1 54 60 61 63              
Independent Philip Hogg 0.9 45 47 47                
Electorate: 13,087   Valid: 4,939   Spoilt: 157   Quota: 988   Turnout: 37.7%  

Source: [5]

Saltcoats and Stevenston

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Labour (2), the SNP (1) and independent councillor Ronnie McNicol retained the seats they had won at the previous election.

Saltcoats and Stevenston - 4 seats
Party Candidate FPv% Count
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Labour Jim Montgomerie 36.2 1,926              
SNP Willie Gibson (incumbent) 23.4 1,244              
Independent Ronnie McNicol (incumbent) 13.2 703 771 789 796 816 884 993 1,210
Labour Alan Munro (incumbent) 10.1 540 1,124            
SNP Nan Wallace 9.0 481 510 642 650 667 688 729  
Conservative David Rocks 3.6 193 198 199 201 205      
Scottish Senior Citizens Jimmy Miller 3.1 163 210 216 225 239 282    
Socialist Labour Debbie Anderson 1.4 76 91 94 100        
Electorate: 15,274   Valid: 5,326   Spoilt: 138   Quota: 1,066   Turnout: 34.9%  

Source: [6]

Ardrossan and Arran

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The SNP, Labour and independent councillor John Hunter retained the seats they had won at the previous election while the SNP gained one seat from former independent councillor Margie Currie.

Ardrossan and Arran - 4 seats
Party Candidate FPv% Count
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
SNP Tony Gurney (incumbent) 17.6 982 986 998 1,033 1,048 1,081 1,095 1,149
SNP John Bruce 15.0 837 841 868 889 918 1,109 1,113 1,157
Independent John Hunter (incumbent) 14.2 792 796 833 895 1,025 1,191    
Labour Peter McNamara (incumbent) 12.9 721 730 738 770 812 871 881 1,414
Labour Loretta Gardner 11.8 659 667 692 720 750 793 798  
Independent Marc A. Head 10.5 588 595 609 620 714      
Conservative David Tate 8.8 491 507 551 561        
Scottish Socialist Campbell Martin 4.2 235 237 250          
UKIP Gordon Niven Allison 3.9 221 227            
Liberal Democrats Nick Smith 1.1 64              
Electorate: 13,674   Valid: 5,590   Spoilt: 106   Quota: 1,119   Turnout: 40.9%  

Source: [7]

Dalry and West Kilbride

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Independent councillor Elizabeth McLardy retained the seat she had won at the previous election while the SNP and independent councillor Robert Barr each gained a seat from Labour and the Conservatives. In 2007, Cllr Barr had been elected as a Conservative candidate but later left the party.

Dalry and West Kilbride - 3 seats
Party Candidate FPv% Count
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Independent Robert Barr (incumbent) 29.4 1,278            
SNP Catherine McMillan 22.6 982 1,010 1,018 1,041 1,077 1,084 1,340
Independent Elizabeth McLardy (incumbent) 19.6 853 884 899 929 1,117    
Labour John Reid (incumbent) 16.0 697 729 737 765 810 815  
Conservative Davina Saunders 9.8 425 447 450 450      
Socialist Labour Louise McDaid 2.2 94 97 99        
Independent John Willis 0.5 24 41          
Electorate: 9,513   Valid: 4,353   Spoilt: 47   Quota: 1,089   Turnout: 45.8%  

Source: [8]

Kilbirnie and Beith

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The SNP, Labour and independent councillor Jean Highgate retained the seats they had won at the previous election.

Kilbirnie and Beith - 3 seats
Party Candidate FPv% Count
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
SNP Anthea Dickson (incumbent) 24.8 1,101 1,107 1,121          
Independent Jean Highgate (incumbent) 17.1 758 767 804 804 910 947 1,000 1,368
SNP Craig Wilson 17.1 762 763 771 778 807 853 886  
Labour John Bell (incumbent) 17.0 756 765 773 773 785 1,370    
Labour Allan Wilson 16.2 721 727 731 731 745      
Conservative Ted Nevill 5.1 228 228 231 231        
Independent Josh McCormick 1.7 77 81            
Socialist Labour Tristan Lindsay 0.9 41              
Electorate: 10,662   Valid: 4,444   Spoilt: 97   Quota: 1,112   Turnout: 41.7%  

Source: [9]

North Coast and Cumbraes

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The SNP (2), Labour (1) and the Conservatives (1) retained the seats they had won at the previous election.

North Coast and Cumbraes - 4 seats
Party Candidate FPv% Count
1 2 3 4 5 6
SNP Alan Hill (incumbent) 27.4 1,705          
Labour Alex Gallagher (incumbent) 18.4 1,144 1,167 1,197 1,281    
Conservative Tom Marshall 18.4 1,143 1,161 1,173 1,176 1,182 1,599
SNP Alex McLean[note 2] 17.5 1,090 1,441        
Independent Ian Murdoch 16.3 1,017 1,050 1,103 1,126 1,137  
Socialist Labour James Anderson 2.0 124 128 137      
Electorate: 13,226   Valid: 6,223   Spoilt: 97   Quota: 1,245   Turnout: 47.0%  

Source: [11]

By-elections

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2014 North Coast and Cumbraes by-election

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North Coast and Cumbraes by-election (30 October 2014) - 1 seat
Party Candidate FPv% Count
1 2 3 4 5
SNP Grace McLean 38.7 2,021 2,045 2,156 2,279 2,966
Independent Drew Cochrane 22.8 1,190 1,234 1,411 2,000  
Conservative Toni Dawson 21.5 1,125 1,174 1,296    
Labour Valerie Reid 13.2 691 711      
UKIP Meilan Henderson 3.6 192        
Electorate: 14,052   Valid: 5,219   Spoilt: 45   Quota: 2,610   Turnout: 37.5%  

Source: [12]

2016 Irvine West by-election

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Irvine West by-election (11 August 2016) - 1 Seat
Party Candidate FPv% Count
1 2 3 4 5 6
SNP Robin Sturgeon 37.5 1,164 1,168 1,207 1,226 1,277  
Labour Louise McPhater 33.1 1,029 1,046 1,060 1,118 1,301 1,697
Conservative Angela Stephen 20.6 639 650 655 658    
Socialist Labour Bobby Cochrane 4.2 131 133 146      
Scottish Green Josh McCormick 3.0 94 100        
Liberal Democrats Nick Smith 1.5 48          
Electorate: 14,849   Valid: 3,105   Spoilt: 46   Quota: 1,553   Turnout: 20.9%  

Source: [13]

Notes

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  1. ^ Irvine West SNP councillor Ruth Maguire was elected as a MSP for Cunninghame South at the 2016 Scottish Parliament election. She resigned her council seat on 25 May 2016 and a by-election was held on 11 August 2016 which was won by Labour's Louise McPhater.[2]
  2. ^ North Coast and Cumbraes SNP councillor Alex McLean died on 1 August 2014.[10] A by-election was held on 30 October 2014 and was won by his widow Grace McLean, also of the SNP.

References

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  1. ^ Teale, Andrew. "Local Elections Archive Project - 2017 - North Ayrshire". Retrieved 18 January 2024.
  2. ^ Ruth Maguire resigns as North Ayrshire councillor to focus on MSP role - triggering by-election for Irvine West seat, Irvine Times, 26 May 2016
  3. ^ "Declaration of Results Ward 01 - Irvine West" (PDF). North Ayrshire Council. 4 May 2012. Retrieved 18 January 2024.
  4. ^ "Declaration of Results Ward 02 - Irvine East" (PDF). North Ayrshire Council. 4 May 2012. Retrieved 18 January 2024.
  5. ^ "Declaration of Results Ward 03 - Kilwinning" (PDF). North Ayrshire Council. 4 May 2012. Retrieved 18 January 2024.
  6. ^ "Declaration of Results Ward 04 - Saltcoats and Stevenston" (PDF). North Ayrshire Council. 4 May 2012. Retrieved 18 January 2024.
  7. ^ "Declaration of Results Ward 05 - Ardrossan and Arran" (PDF). North Ayrshire Council. 4 May 2012. Retrieved 18 January 2024.
  8. ^ "Declaration of Results Ward 06 - Dalry and West Kilbride" (PDF). North Ayrshire Council. 4 May 2012. Retrieved 18 January 2024.
  9. ^ "Declaration of Results Ward 07 - Kilbirnie and Beith" (PDF). North Ayrshire Council. 4 May 2012. Retrieved 18 January 2024.
  10. ^ Councillor Alex McLean, North Ayrshire Council, 6 August 2014 (archived version, 2014)
  11. ^ "Declaration of Results Ward 08 - North Coast and Cumbraes" (PDF). North Ayrshire Council. 4 May 2012. Retrieved 18 January 2024.
  12. ^ "Declaration of Results Ward 08 - North Coast and Cumbraes" (PDF). North Ayrshire Council. 20 October 2014. Retrieved 18 January 2024.
  13. ^ "Election Results Ward 1 Irvine West" (PDF). North Ayrshire Council. 4 May 2012. Retrieved 18 January 2024.
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