Six principal authority by-elections took place across Scotland and England on Thursday 1st October.

Reform UK were defending two seats in Northumberland (Amble and Hirst), the Conservatives were defending two seats (in Stirling and North West Leicestershire), Labour defended one seat in Blackpool, and an Independent seat was contested in Highland.

The headline story of the week was a sensational Scottish Liberal Democrat gain in Highland Council, where Julie Calder stormed to victory with over 50% of first-preference votes in the SNP Council Leader’s own ward. Across the border in England, a decisive dynamic unfolded as the newly formed Restore party split the right-wing vote in both Blackpool and Amble. Had Restore’s votes gone to Reform UK, Reform would have won both seats; instead, the split allowed Labour to hold Blackpool and gain Amble. Labour also reclaimed Hirst from Reform UK, while the Conservatives held off challenges in Stirling and North West Leicestershire.

Scotland

Highland Council, Wick and East Caithness

In the Scottish Highlands, the Liberal Democrats delivered a staggering by-election victory in the Wick and East Caithness ward of Highland Council following the resignation of an Independent councillor.

Wick and East Caithness is a multi-member ward governed under the STV system, where the SNP Leader of the Council also holds a seat. In 2022, the Liberal Democrats topped the first-preference vote with the SNP leader finishing second – both getting elected in the first round, before an Independent and Conservative filled the remaining seats in the fifth round.

In last night’s contest, Julie Calder secured an astonishing 50.4% of first-preference votes – an increase of 21.6 percentage points – to win the seat outright on the very first stage of counting! Reaching an absolute majority of first preferences in the council leader’s own ward is a phenomenal achievement and reflects the immense trust residents place in our Highland Liberal Democrat team.

A massive congratulations to Cllr Julie Calder and the local campaign team in Caithness on an iconic victory!

Lib Dem (Julie Calder): 1,522 (50.4%, +21.6%)

Independent: 714 (23.6%, new)

SNP: 424 (14.0%, -11.3%)

Reform UK: 283 (9.4%, new)

Conservative: 79 (2.6%, -12.5%)

Turnout: 30.0%

First-preference votes. Elected at Stage 1.

Liberal Democrat GAIN from Independent

Stirling Council, Forth and Endrick

Over in central Scotland, the Conservatives were defending a seat in the Forth and Endrick ward of Stirling Council. Stirling Council is currently under a minority administration on a tightly balanced 23-seat authority where the Liberal Democrats currently hold no representation.

In a competitive STV contest that went to six rounds of counting, the Conservatives managed to hold off the SNP.

Thank you to James MaClaren for standing and ensuring local residents had a Liberal Democrat choice on the voting paper.

Conservative: 1,118 (34.2%, -1.8%)

SNP: 1,057 (30.5%, -4.8%)

Labour: 380 (11.0%, -3.1%)

Green Party: 317 (9.1%, new)

Reform UK: 298 (8.6%, new)

Lib Dem (James MaClaren): 175 (5.0%, -0.7%)

Independent: 55 (1.6%, new)

Turnout: 32.2%

First-preference votes. Elected at Stage 7.

Conservative HOLD

North of England

Blackpool MBC, Claremont

On the Lancashire coast, Labour defended a seat in the Claremont ward of Blackpool Metropolitan Borough Council.

After having a razor thin majority on the council following the 2019 local election, Labour reinforced their majority on Blackpool Council back in 2023. Claremont was one of the few wards where the Liberal Democrats stood in previous cycles. Most contests in Blackpool last time were between Conservatives and Labour. This time all the “old” parties fell back as populist parties tried to make a breakthrough in a city which is increasingly losing faith in the traditional parties. The election in 2027 will be interesting. In a low-turnout contest, the right-wing vote split directly between Reform UK and Restore, which ultimately saved Labour from a defeat; had Restore’s 79 votes gone to Reform UK, Reform would have won the seat.

Thank you to Kevan Benfold for making sure a hard-working Liberal Democrat option was available for voters in Claremont.

Labour: 458 (41.8%, -10.5%)

Reform UK: 419 (38.2%, new)

Restore: 79 (7.2%, new)

Conservative: 62 (5.7%, -15.9%)

Green Party: 44 (4.0%, new)

Lib Dem (Kevan Benfold): 18 (1.6%, -10.4%)

Independent: 16 (1.5%, new)

Turnout: 22.0%

Labour HOLD

Northumberland CC, Amble

In the Amble division of Northumberland County Council, Labour gained a seat from Reform UK that they had previously lost in 2025. This was another race heavily shaped by the entry of Restore, whose 76 votes split the right-wing vote share away from Reform UK and allowed Labour to edge through with a narrow majority.

Labour: 439 (38.8%, +0.4%)

Reform UK: 379 (33.5%, -10.9%)

Conservative: 236 (20.9%, +3.7%)

Restore: 76 (6.7%, new)

Turnout: 31.0%

Labour GAIN from Reform UK

Northumberland CC, Hirst

In the neighbouring Hirst division, Labour also won back the seat from Reform UK, who had taken it in 2025. Reform’s drop-off in both these seats is quite a head-turner, as Labour’s reprieve under Andy Burnham’s new premiership continues. 

The Conservatives remained the largest group on the council in No Overall Control following the 2025 elections, while the Liberal Democrats hold three seats. Reform UK had picked up 23 seats mostly from the Conservatives and Labour to push Labour into third place in terms of number of councillors. 

Calvin Clark stood for the Liberal Democrats, ensuring residents had a Liberal Democrat choice, as Labour reclaimed the seat comfortably with over 50% of the vote while Reform UK’s share fell sharply.

Thank you to Calvin Clark for standing and ensuring a Liberal Democrat option was on the ballot paper.

Labour: 350 (50.1%, +7.0%)

Reform UK: 210 (30.0%, -20.0%)

Restore: 72 (10.3%, new)

Conservative: 29 (4.1%, -2.8%)

Lib Dem (Calvin Clark): 27 (3.9%, new)

Independent: 11 (1.6%, new)

Turnout: 21.0%

Labour GAIN from Reform UK

Midlands

North West Leicestershire DC, Long Whatton and Diseworth

In Leicestershire, the Conservatives defended the Long Whatton and Diseworth ward of North West Leicestershire District Council.

Following the 2023 local elections, the council moved to No Overall Control as Labour became the biggest party. A cross-party coalition of Conservatives, Liberal Democrats, and Independents formed an administration. In Long Whatton and Diseworth, the Conservatives maintained a solid hold in a high-turnout contest, while new insurgent parties squeezed vote shares across all traditional parties.

Thank you to Ian Bradley for representing the party and ensuring local residents had a Liberal Democrat candidate on the ballot paper.

Conservative: 576 (55.5%, -4.6%)

Reform UK: 204 (19.7%, new)

Labour: 147 (14.2%, -18.4%)

Restore: 55 (5.3%, new)

Green Party: 34 (3.3%, new)

Lib Dem (Ian Bradley): 22 (2.1%, -5.2%)

Turnout: 50.8%

Conservative HOLD

A full summary of these results, and all other principal council by-elections, can be found on the ALDC by-elections page here: https://www.aldc.org/category/by-election-results/

* Joe Nutt is a Campaigns and Communications Officer for ALDC