1992 Leeds City Council election

The Leeds City Council elections were held on Thursday, 7 May 1992, with one third of the council's seats up for election.

Held one month after the 1992 general election where Conservatives won a surprise fourth term, the Conservatives in Leeds shared in that success, surpassing Labour's vote for the first time in a decade, and winning their greatest share since 1978. Despite these feats, their vote remained constant with recent elections - in stark contrast to the opposition parties, whose votes had seen dramatic falls, with the Liberal Democrat vote their lowest since 1978, and Labour's their lowest recorded since the council's creation in 1973.

The minor parties also saw disappointment, with the Liberal vote more than halved the previous year and comfortably their worst, whilst the Greens - in spite of a record number of candidates, up considerably from the year before - seen a decrease in their vote. All of which resulted in a record low in turnout, suggesting the Tory revival was driven more by their national result hurting opposition moral than any resurgence in their support.

The Conservatives were able to win their greatest number of wards since 1983, gaining a seat each from Labour and the Lib Dems in their respective marginals of Morley North and Horsforth. The Tory gain in Horsforth, as well as Labour's rise in Armley, left the Lib Dem victories confined to just two wards for the first time since 1979 (Burmantofts and Moortown), and their councillor total the lowest since 1980. The sole Independent standing, Peter Kersting, won his fourth term in Pudsey South with ease (with the first being won as Conservative).^[1]

Election result

Leeds Local Election Result 1992
	Seats	Gains	Losses	Net gain/loss	Seats %	Votes %	Votes	+/−
Labour	19	0	1	-1	57.6	38.4	65,813	-7.7%
Conservative	11	2	0	+2	33.3	40.7	69,676	+10.5%
Liberal Democrats	2	0	1	-1	6.1	16.1	27,507	-4.1%
Independent	1	0	0	0	3.0	1.7	2,953	+1.6%
Green	0	0	0	0	0.0	2.3	3,863	+0.4%
Liberal	0	0	0	0	0.0	0.8	1,332	-0.7%

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

Party		Previous council	New council
	Labour	68	67
	Conservative	21	23
	Liberal Democrat	9	8
	Independent	1	1
Total		99	99
Working majority		37	35

Ward results

Aireborough^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	R. Hughes-Rowlands	3,851	51.3	+14.1
	Labour	Gerry Harper	2,358	31.4	−0.9
	Liberal Democrats	D. Gowland	1,161	15.5	−12.7
	Green	A. Peterken	144	1.9	−0.4
Majority			1,493	19.9	+15.0
Turnout			7,514
	Conservative hold		Swing	+7.5

Armley^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	James McKenna	2,094	52.1	−4.9
	Conservative	J. Mortimer	1,038	25.8	+8.6
	Liberal	A. Gonzalez	450	11.2	+0.7
	Liberal Democrats	A. Davies	315	7.8	−2.0
	Green	M. Stroud	120	3.0	−2.3
Majority			1,056	26.3	−13.5
Turnout			4,017
	Labour hold		Swing	-6.7

Barwick & Kippax^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Keith Wakefield	3,414	50.1	−5.1
	Conservative	C. Ward	2,852	41.8	+12.1
	Liberal Democrats	D. Lindley	551	8.1	−2.5
Majority			562	8.2	−17.2
Turnout			6,817
	Labour hold		Swing	-8.6

Beeston^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Dsvid Congreve	1,861	55.6	−6.8
	Conservative	H. Woodhead	1,105	33.0	+9.5
	Liberal Democrats	T. Barton	384	11.5	−2.7
Majority			756	22.6	−16.3
Turnout			3,350
	Labour hold		Swing	-8.1

Bramley^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	C. Cliff	2,477	60.4	−0.8
	Conservative	T. Cooper	956	23.3	+10.4
	Liberal	A. St. Quintin	291	7.1	−14.8
	Liberal Democrats	C. Ward	252	6.1	+2.1
	Green	M. Chatwood	125	3.0	+3.0
Majority			1,521	37.1	−2.2
Turnout			4,101
	Labour hold		Swing	-5.6

Burmantofts^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal Democrats	N. Mackie	1,971	50.4	+13.3
	Labour	T. Ayres	1,642	42.0	−15.4
	Conservative	R. Jones	300	7.7	+2.0
Majority			329	8.4	−11.9
Turnout			3,913
	Liberal Democrats hold		Swing	+14.3

Chapel Allerton^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	J. Frankland	2,647	58.3	−4.0
	Conservative	I. Baxter	1,310	28.8	+8.2
	Liberal Democrats	J. Pullan	367	8.1	−3.1
	Green	R. Mills	219	4.8	−1.0
Majority			1,337	29.4	−12.2
Turnout			4,543
	Labour hold		Swing	-6.1

City & Holbeck^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Elizabeth Nash	2,001	66.0	−3.4
	Conservative	D. Boynton	542	17.9	+7.1
	Liberal Democrats	R. Mayne	326	10.8	−4.2
	Green	D. Blakemore	163	5.4	+0.5
Majority			1,459	48.1	−6.4
Turnout			3,032
	Labour hold		Swing	-5.2

Cookridge^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Keith Loudon	3,989	63.7	+10.7
	Labour	G. Greenley	1,132	18.1	−8.4
	Liberal Democrats	G. Murly	1,024	16.3	−4.3
	Green	P. Marchant	122	1.9	+1.9
Majority			2,857	45.6	+19.1
Turnout			6,267
	Conservative hold		Swing	+9.5

Garforth & Swillington^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Thomas Murray	3,286	48.3	−8.4
	Conservative	J. Stott	2,893	42.5	+13.1
	Liberal Democrats	R. Hutchinson	623	9.2	−4.7
Majority			393	5.8	−21.5
Turnout			6,802
	Labour hold		Swing	-10.7

Halton^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	David Schofield	3,451	58.7	+11.9
	Labour	R. Haggerty	1,769	30.1	−8.0
	Liberal Democrats	David Hollingsworth	491	8.4	−6.6
	Green	D. Harbud	165	2.8	+2.8
Majority			1,682	28.6	+19.9
Turnout			5,876
	Conservative hold		Swing	+9.9

Harehills^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	L. Cohen	2,115	64.2	−3.1
	Conservative	A. Wilson	652	19.8	+7.1
	Liberal Democrats	R. Senior	342	10.4	+0.0
	Green	Andrew Tear	186	5.6	−0.1
Majority			1,463	44.4	−10.2
Turnout			3,295
	Labour hold		Swing	-5.1

Headingley^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	S. Perrigo	2,611	47.8	−2.4
	Conservative	G. King	1,463	26.8	+8.5
	Liberal Democrats	D. Goodman	964	17.6	−14.0
	Green	P. Alexander	428	7.8	+7.8
Majority			1,148	21.0	+2.5
Turnout			5,466
	Labour hold		Swing	-5.4

Horsforth^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	M. Addison	3,843	50.7	+10.8
	Liberal Democrats	Christopher Townsley	2,802	37.0	−5.1
	Labour	C. Hooson	723	9.5	−8.6
	Green	G. Williamson	211	2.8	+2.8
Majority			1,041	13.7	+11.5
Turnout			7,579
	Conservative gain from Liberal Democrats		Swing	+7.9

Hunslet^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Geoffrey Driver	1,970	76.1	−8.3
	Conservative	A. Larvin	454	17.5	+2.0
	Liberal Democrats	Stephen Sadler	165	6.4	+6.4
Majority			1,516	58.6	−10.3
Turnout			2,589
	Labour hold		Swing	-5.1

Kirkstall^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Elizabeth Minkin	2,528	58.4	−1.3
	Conservative	S. McBarron	1,103	25.5	+7.5
	Green	A. Mander	369	8.5	−1.8
	Liberal	N. Nowosielski	327	7.6	−4.4
Majority			1,425	32.9	−8.9
Turnout			4,327
	Labour hold		Swing	-4.4

Middleton^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	F. Dignan	1,887	66.0	−6.1
	Conservative	D. Jowett	687	24.0	+8.0
	Liberal Democrats	G. Roberts	286	10.0	−1.9
Majority			1,200	42.0	−14.0
Turnout			2,860
	Labour hold		Swing	-7.0

Moortown^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal Democrats	Mark Harris	3,301	49.3	−0.9
	Conservative	J. Dagwell	2,360	35.2	+7.0
	Labour	M. Plenderleith	922	13.8	−7.7
	Green	C. Wooding	113	1.7	+1.7
Majority			941	14.1	−7.8
Turnout			6,696
	Liberal Democrats hold		Swing	-3.9

Morley North^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	A. Barraclough	3,218	52.5	+12.7
	Labour	P. Jones	2,517	41.0	−7.1
	Liberal Democrats	G. Smith	400	6.5	−5.6
Majority			701	11.4	+3.0
Turnout			6,135
	Conservative gain from Labour		Swing	+9.9

Morley South^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Bryan North	2,631	49.3	−5.1
	Conservative	J. Galek	1,887	35.3	+9.2
	Liberal Democrats	Thomas Leadley	720	13.5	−6.0
	Green	T. Sykes	103	1.9	+1.9
Majority			744	13.9	−14.3
Turnout			5,341
	Labour hold		Swing	-7.1

North^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Peter Harrand	3,403	57.4	+2.6
	Liberal Democrats	W. Forshaw	1,631	27.5	+1.7
	Labour	P. Moxon	899	15.2	−4.3
Majority			1,772	29.9	+0.9
Turnout			5,933
	Conservative hold		Swing	+0.4

Otley & Wharfedale^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	C. Hindle	4,124	54.3	+19.2
	Liberal Democrats	E. Diggle	2,103	27.7	−16.1
	Labour	John Everleigh	1,365	18.0	−3.1
Majority			2,021	26.6	+12.5
Turnout			7,592
	Conservative hold		Swing	+17.6

Pudsey North^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Andrew Carter	4,154	61.3	+17.8
	Labour	A. Procter	1,515	22.4	−9.9
	Liberal Democrats	Christine Glover	970	14.3	−5.8
	Green	R. Notley	139	2.1	−2.1
Majority			2,639	38.9	+27.6
Turnout			6,778
	Conservative hold		Swing	+13.8

Pudsey South^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent	Peter Kersting	2,953	47.3	+47.3
	Conservative	L. Fletcher	1,435	23.0	−4.9
	Labour	Robert Finnigan	1,402	22.5	−24.2
	Liberal Democrats	M. Booker	364	5.8	−19.5
	Green	C. Dillon-Parkin	85	1.4	+1.4
Majority			1,518	24.3	+5.6
Turnout			6,239
	Independent hold		Swing	+26.1

Richmond Hill^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Michael Lyons	2,295	71.4	−2.6
	Conservative	J. Birch	510	15.9	+5.4
	Liberal Democrats	Keith Norman	334	10.4	−5.0
	Green	A. Beggs	74	2.3	+2.3
Majority			1,785	55.6	−3.0
Turnout			3,213
	Labour hold		Swing	-4.0

Rothwell^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	R. Lund	2,501	54.4	−1.1
	Conservative	A. Heeson	1,273	27.7	+5.8
	Liberal Democrats	A. Barber	820	17.8	−4.7
Majority			1,228	26.7	−6.3
Turnout			4,594
	Labour hold		Swing	-3.4

Roundhay^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Pat Crotty	3,726	57.9	+8.0
	Labour	M. Davies	1,420	22.1	−5.4
	Liberal Democrats	J. Sefton	1,059	16.4	−2.0
	Green	P. Ellis	233	3.6	−0.5
Majority			2,306	35.8	+13.4
Turnout			6,438
	Conservative hold		Swing	+6.7

Seacroft^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Graham Hyde	2,808	77.0	+0.9
	Conservative	M. Collinson	607	16.6	+3.3
	Liberal Democrats	Sadie Fisher	234	6.4	−4.2
Majority			2,201	60.3	−2.4
Turnout			3,649
	Labour hold		Swing	-1.2

University^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	A. Munro	2,019	61.2	−4.3
	Conservative	Robert Winfield	581	17.6	+4.7
	Liberal Democrats	A. Norman	358	10.9	−0.7
	Green	J. Noble	340	10.3	+0.3
Majority			1,438	43.6	−9.0
Turnout			3,298
	Labour hold		Swing	-4.5

Weetwood^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	M. Castle	2,744	46.1	+8.3
	Labour	Brian Selby	1,636	27.5	−7.5
	Liberal Democrats	Joan Ewens	1,393	23.4	−3.8
	Green	Claire Nash	184	3.1	+3.1
Majority			1,108	18.6	+15.8
Turnout			5,957
	Conservative hold		Swing	+7.9

Wetherby^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	H. Gardiner	5,967	74.4	+15.8
	Labour	S. Molloy	1,161	14.5	−3.3
	Liberal Democrats	T. Gittins	889	11.1	−8.8
Majority			4,806	59.9	+21.1
Turnout			8,017
	Conservative hold		Swing	+9.5

Whinmoor^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Suzie Armitage	2,044	46.9	−9.0
	Conservative	W. Hanbury	1,745	40.0	+9.7
	Liberal Democrats	A. Beck	571	13.1	−0.7
Majority			299	6.9	−18.6
Turnout			4,360
	Labour hold		Swing	-9.3

Wortley^[1]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	P. Towler	2,163	47.5	−9.0
	Conservative	E. Ashton	1,453	31.9	+11.8
	Green	David Blackburn	340	7.5	+2.5
	Liberal Democrats	John McArthur	336	7.4	−1.4
	Liberal	P. Williams	264	5.8	−3.8
Majority			710	15.6	−20.7
Turnout			4,556
	Labour hold		Swing	-10.4

By-elections between 1992 and 1994

Wetherby by-election 23 July 1992
replacing John Evans
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	John Procter	3,379	71.3	−3.1
	Liberal Democrats	Ann 'Paddy' Beck	772	16.3	+5.2
	Labour	Stephen Molloy	586	12.4	−2.1
Majority			2,607	55.0	−4.9
Turnout			4,737
	Conservative hold		Swing	-4.1

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. 8 May 1992.

[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. 8 May 1992.

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