Tag Archives: by-election report

ALDC

ALDC by-election report – 24 April 2025

By ALDC | Mon 28th April 2025 - 1:09 pm

Thursday 24th April saw four principal by-elections (each of them with a Lib Dem candidate), including a Liberal Democrat defence.

Congratulations are due to Cllr Tom McCann and the West Berkshire team, who held Thatcham North East, despite an increased field. Both Labour and Reform were new onto the ballot, and their combined support was much more than the dip in the Lib Dem vote share.

West Berkshire District Council, Thatcham North East

Liberal Democrats (Tom McCann): 690 (41.1, -14.8)
Conservative: 428 (25.5%, +0.1)
Reform UK: 367 (21.9%, new)
Green Party: 127 (7.6%, -11.0)
Labour: 65 (3.9%, new)

Liberal Democrat HOLD

Meanwhile, there was a near miss in Arun, where there was a Lib Dem/Reform battle to gain from independent in Marine ward, whose other councillor is a Liberal Democrat. Commiserations to Paul Wells and the team, who were pipped by just ten votes.

Continue reading »
Posted in Local government and News | 2 Comments
Charles Quinn

ALDC by-election report 18th January 2024

By Charles Quinn | Sat 20th January 2024 - 1:00 pm

We continued our amazing start to the year in this week’s by-elections. Across 6 contests we won in 3 (including a superb gain in Richmond). We stood a candidate in all 6 by-elections.

There were two by-elections on Richmond on Thames LBC this week and both saw excellent Lib Dem wins.

We gained Hampton North ward from the Conservatives, and in doing so wiped the Conservatives out on the Council. A remarkable achievement by the Lib Dem team in Richmond. As recently as 2018 the Conservatives were running the Council! Congratulations to Councillor Carey Bishop on a brilliant win that increased our vote share by 19.9% and our majority on the Council!

Continue reading »
Posted in News | 2 Comments
Paul Heilbron

ALDC by-election report 28th July

By Paul Heilbron | Fri 29th July 2022 - 8:00 pm

Another week goes by, another round of up all things By-elections goes live. A noticeably quiet week for principal by-elections with one only two being contested across the country. However, a very action-packed agenda on the Town Council front and more specifically, Town Council by-elections in Westhoughton, three in one evening!

As Liberal Democrats we take Town and Parish elections extremely seriously. Community politicians are the beating heart of our democracy, and we pride ourselves on representing our communities as close as possible to the people that we represent.

So here we have it one hold, one gain and one near miss rounds up a great evening for the local Liberal Democrat team in Westhoughton. Alison Jackson or should I say councillor Alison Jackson gained Ward Hoskers and Hart ward, whilst Linda Maher comfortably held onto Central ward. Commiserations go out to Ryan Hough who was pipped to the post by only 29 votes, it was nearly a perfect night for the local Liberal Democrat team!

 

Westhoughton TC, Hoskers and Hart

Liberal Democrats (Alison Jackson): 137
Labour: 90
Conservative: 89
Independent: 64

 

Westhoughton TC, Central

Liberal Democrats (Linda Maher): 276
Labour: 171
Conservative: 129
Independent: 87

 

Westhoughton TC, White Horse

Conservative: 415
Liberal Democrats (Ryan Hough): 384
Labour: 208
Independent: 52
Green: 21

 

Continue reading »
Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged | 8 Comments
Paul Heilbron

By Election Report

By Paul Heilbron | Sun 10th July 2022 - 3:30 pm

By-elections are back in the spotlight and the Lib Dems kicked off the second half of the year much the same as the first, another successful night in the world of council By-elections. With Boris gone, Tiverton and Honiton won and few new Lib Dem councillors on the roster, it really is a great time to be a Liberal Democrat.

With eight principal elections up for grabs, of which seven saw a Lib Dem on the ballot, and a straight shoot out Town Council By-election, July 7th was sure to be an interesting affair on the By-election front. 

We kick off proceedings on Camden Council in the capital where newly elected Lib Dem councillor Linda Chung gained the seat of Hampstead Town from the Conservatives with a stonking three hundred vote majority! Congratulations to Linda and local team. 

Camden, Hampstead Town

Liberal Democrats (Linda Chung): 919
Conservative: 620
Labour: 559
Green: 104
Independent: 44
National Housing Party: 1

Continue reading »
Posted in News | 12 Comments
Paul Heilbron

ALDC by-election report: Manchester gain and two holds

By Paul Heilbron | Mon 7th February 2022 - 11:19 pm

Another Thursday goes by, another action-packed week of by-elections comes with it. As always we have the tail of the tape with all the ups, downs, close calls and no-contests. In a snapshot; two Liberal Democrat holds over at Dacorum, a huge Lib Dem gain in Manchester and three other holds for Labour and Conservatives across the country complete this week’s super 6 of by-elections.

Continue reading »
Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged | 3 Comments
Paul Heilbron

ALDC by-election report 9 December 2021

By Paul Heilbron | Sat 11th December 2021 - 12:05 pm

The onset of the parliamentary recess is upon us. A hiatus in the by-election schedule is just around the corner. 2021 is drawing to a conclusion. Therefore, it wouldn’t be naïve to think that the Lib Dems had wound up the victories for 2021. Nevertheless, this week’s local by-elections proved that not only do Liberal Democrats canvass all year but we also win all year round.

Central to our continued success is the fantastic work all our councillors, candidates and ardent supporters carry out without exception week in week out.

Rotherham provided a tectonic shift in the political landscape with a huge gain for the Liberal Democrats. We were propelled into second place in Torridge. Whilst Labour achieved gains from the Conservatives at Aughton & Swallownest and Old Bracknell.

Continue reading »
Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged | 7 Comments
Steffan Aquarone

Lessons from the Stalham (North Norfolk) byelection loss

By Steffan Aquarone | Sat 4th December 2021 - 12:34 pm

As the fantastic team of over forty volunteers recovers from our collective disappointment, it’s worth saying how proud I am of the way people rallied around our fabulous candidate in the depths of winter, against a cynical and purposeful Tory opposition.

Disappointing though our loss is, had this not been the case we may not have learnt a vital lesson that I now feel ought to be shared – in particular for the benefit of areas where we are in control of the local council.

My reflection is that we lost, not to the Tories, who got nearly the same number of votes as they did last time, but to motivation. With only a 22% turnout (and a target pool that included soft conservatives on polling day, and was canvassed in full nearly twice), we know our supporters did not switch to the Tories, but it quickly became apparent that they lacked sufficient motivation to go out and vote.

Continue reading »
Posted in Op-eds | 10 Comments
Charles Quinn

ALDC by-election report: 11 November 2021

By Charles Quinn | Fri 12th November 2021 - 8:09 pm

Thursday’s by-elections threw up some very interesting results. There was an excellent performance from the Lib Dems in Cardiff, while lots had to be drawn to decide a winner in North Kesteven in Lincolnshire!

Most of all this week we want to credit all Lib Dem candidates and local parties who stood for election and gave voters in their area the opportunity to support a Liberal Democrat on the ballot paper.

Continue reading »
Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged | 5 Comments
Charles Quinn

ALDC by-election report: 4 September 2021

By Charles Quinn | Sat 6th November 2021 - 10:36 am

It has been a simply outstanding week for the Lib Dems – with a number of sensational performances and results in by-elections across the country at every level.

There was a double-helping of principle-authority gains from the Conservatives in West Sussex and Gloucester where both campaigns were helped by a Fighting Fund Grant from ALDC.

Continue reading »
Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged | 4 Comments
Charles Quinn

ALDC by-election report: 21 October 2021

By Charles Quinn | Sun 24th October 2021 - 10:29 am

It was a quiet week for by-elections – with only three principle authority local by-elections taking place on Thursday. However, it was still a great week for the Lib Dems – holding two principal authority seats in Birmingham and Horsham.

Continue reading »
Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged | 1 Comment
Charles Quinn

ALDC by-election report: 14 September 2021

By Charles Quinn | Sun 17th October 2021 - 12:31 pm

After a busy couple of weeks there were fewer by-elections on Thursday night. Polls were held in Surrey Heath, Harrow, Wigan, Billericay and Falkirk.

Continue reading »
Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged | 6 Comments
Charles Quinn

ALDC By-election Report: 23 September 2021

By Charles Quinn | Sat 25th September 2021 - 10:30 am

There were seven local by-elections on Thursday night. It was a mixed bag of results for the Lib Dems with some great holds but a very narrow loss too.

There were two great defences in Kendal as newly elected Lib Dem Councillors Jonathan Cornthwaite (Kendal North ward, South Lakeland DC) and Phil Walker (Strickland Ward, Kendal TC) both won with just short of 50% of the vote. Congratulations to Jonathan, Phil and the Lib Dem team in Kendal. The full results are below and you can find full breakdowns here.

Continue reading »
Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged | 14 Comments
Charles Quinn

ALDC By-election report: 16 September 2021

By Charles Quinn | Sat 18th September 2021 - 12:30 pm

It was a very busy night for the Lib Dems with by-elections up and down the country and some amazing results. We saw a 34% swing towards the Lib Dems in a Sheffield ward, sadly short of a win. Lib Dem candidate Tanya Tucker won a fantastic gain from Labour on Bishop Auckland Town Council. Jack Ashington Carter won polling 74% of the vote for a Malvern Town Council ward. Alton Wooteys held his ward on Alton Town Council with in increased share of the vote.

Continue reading »
Posted in News | Also tagged | Leave a comment
The Voice

ALDC by-election report: Great Newcastle win

By The Voice | Fri 10th September 2021 - 7:06 pm

The undoubted highlight of this week’s by-elections was a magnificent victory for ALDC’s very own Thom Campion (now Cllr Thom Campion!) who held Castle ward on Newcastle Council after a hard fought campaign with an impressive majority of over 500 and 42% of the vote. Congratulations Thom!

Elsewhere Lib Dem candidate Nick Brailsford finished a good second place in a by-election to Wingerworth Parish Council, while Marc Hadley came a very close third in a three-way contest in Penzance Promenade ward on Penzance PC.

Elsewhere there were a number of district and parish by-elections in North East Derbyshire that went to Labour

…

Continue reading »
Posted in News | 3 Comments
NewsHound

By-election report 3 September 2021 – Win in Northampton

By NewsHound | Fri 3rd September 2021 - 6:26 pm

As always, a mixed bag of results for the by-elections this week. In three by-elections, we gained under 10% of the vote. But Newshound takes his hat off to Jacqueline Fuchshuber who gained a seat on Northampton Town Council by just seven votes. A win is a win, another Lib Dem win.

Continue reading »
Posted in Council by-elections | 17 Comments
Ollie Bradfield

By-election report from ALDC: 15th July….and 13th?

By Ollie Bradfield | Sat 17th July 2021 - 2:50 pm

When we were looking at this week of by-elections coming up, we thought it’d be a bit of a lull. In fact, it’s been one of the most exciting by-election weeks we’ve had in a while! A Tuesday by-election, flying the flag for the first time in 15 years in Sandwell, and an outstanding Parish Council win by just one vote. It’s been a great week for us by-election nerds!

We had quite the pleasant surprise here at ALDC towers when someone reported a by-election happening on Tuesday night, even more so when it ended up being another Lib Dem win. Whilst there’s long standing statutory requirements for local elections to be held on the first Thursday of May, and the same for general elections since the Fixed-Terms Parliament Act, no such regulations exist for by-elections, and is merely convention. Why this one bucked convention no one quite knows…

Continue reading »
Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged | 1 Comment
Ollie Bradfield

By-election report from ALDC – Thursday 8 July 2021

By Ollie Bradfield | Sat 10th July 2021 - 10:31 am

This week’s by-elections present a very mixed picture, along with some crucial lessons in defending our held seats. With eight vacancies to fight, we stood in six, succeeding in one. We lost our one defence in East Devon, in what was a disappointing result. Nevertheless, good campaigns were fought elsewhere, and we can celebrate a good town council gain.

There two Green gains on Thursday, we stood in one and not the other. The lesson is it’s always better to stand for the sake of giving voters a real choice, rather than getting any misplaced ideas about deals and pacts.

Continue reading »
Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged | 10 Comments
Ollie Bradfield

Local Council By-Elections 24th June 2021: Another night of Lib Dem success

By Ollie Bradfield | Fri 25th June 2021 - 5:05 pm

Following on from the stunning by-election result last week in Chesham and Amersham, there’s been plenty for Lib Dems to celebrate in this week’s local government by-elections. An excellent gain in Chichester and a hold in Somerset West and Taunton has left us feeling very good for the second Friday in a row.

The headline result of the night has to be Chichester East, following on from their great performance at the County elections in May. The local team worked hard and it showed: a 24.7% increase and taking the seat off the Tories from third is seriously impressive. They were out knocking on doors rain or shine, and managed to get the fantastic candidate Bill Brisbane over the line. The win was down to a classic campaign fought well: lots of leaflets, a strong focus on squeeze, letters to postal voters, and a phenomenal Get Out The Vote effort. A cracking team, a superlative candidate, and a Fighting Fund grant from ALDC proved to be the winning formula. A huge congratulations to everyone involved.

Continue reading »
Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged and | 5 Comments
Mark Valladares

A ray of hope in West Suffolk

By Mark Valladares | Fri 31st January 2020 - 11:23 am

It would be fair to say that Suffolk has not been a bright spot for Liberal Democracy for some years, and West Suffolk has been weak even in that context, with no representation on the District Council or its predecessors since 2015.

However, with a recent membership surge, the resignation of the newly elected MP for Aberconwy from both the District and County Councils offered an opportunity to get local members engaged. Our candidate, Jonny Edge, is a local school governor, and with support from some experienced old hands – many thanks to …

Continue reading »
Posted in Council by-elections and News | Also tagged | 8 Comments
ALDC

ALDC by-election review – 18 October 2018

By ALDC | Fri 19th October 2018 - 1:27 pm

There were 2 by elections to keep us ticking over this week before the 11 by elections on Super Thursday next week. With candidates standing in 2 Labour safe seats it was a challenging week for the local Lib Dems.

Hackney LB, Victoria – Labour Hold

Lab 1311
LD Pippa Morgan 436
Green 296
Con 148
WEP 84

Our best result of the night came in the safe Labour London Borough of Hackney. Despite Labour holding the seat, Lib Dem candidate Pippa Morgan ran a great campaign resulting in an increase of 10.3% of the vote share. With Labour losing 9.7% …

Continue reading »
Posted in News | Also tagged | 8 Comments
Mark Valladares

Upset in East Herts, solid hold in Cornwall…

By Mark Valladares | Fri 24th August 2018 - 11:05 am

Another Thursday, another unlikely result…

Yes, that’s a 51.7% swing, for the aficionados out there.

For the Conservatives, who had previously held all fifty seats on the council, they’ll just have to get used to having an opposition in the Council chamber. Well done to Sophie Cook, one of our younger members, and her team in a part of the county where success has been traditionally hard won.

Elsewhere, a solid defence in Bude, on Cornwall Council…

See, not all gammon is bad… Again, congratulations to David Parsons and the North Cornwall crew – a lovely bunch from my memory as Presidential consort.

Continue reading »
Posted in Local government and News | Also tagged | 26 Comments
ALDC

ALDC’s by-election report – 12 February 2015

By ALDC | Fri 13th February 2015 - 4:02 pm

ALDC Master Logo (for screen)Three principal council by-election were held yesterday. In Cambridgeshire (CC), the Conservatives comfortably held their seat in Bar Hill ward, polling 46% of the vote to finish 536 votes ahead of the UKIP candidate. Fiona Whelan finished a close third with 13.9%, an improvement on the party’s vote share in the ward’s previous election in 2013 of 5.4%.

The contest in Oswestry East ward in Shropshire (UA) once again saw the Conservatives secure an easy hold, with their candidate finish 411 votes ahead of second place Labour with 47.5% of the vote. Lib Dem candidate Amanda Woof registered 16.5% to finish fourth, with the party not fielding a candidate in the ward’s 2013 election.

Continue reading »
Posted in News | Also tagged , and | 19 Comments
ALDC

ALDC’s By-Election Report: A dearth of Liberal Democrat candidates

By ALDC | Sat 1st November 2014 - 9:05 am

ALDC Master Logo (for screen)Five principal council by-elections were contested yesterday in England, Scotland and Wales. In Telford & Wrekin (UA), by-elections were held in Ironbridge Gorge and Newport West. The former contest resulted in a Labour hold although they saw a decrease of 8.9% in their vote from the ward’s 2011 election, after UKIP had polled 18.5% despite not fielding a candidate in 2011. In Newport West an Independent candidate gained a seat from the Conservatives to become the second Independent representative on Telford & Wrekin council. The Conservatives saw a 37% decrease in their vote finishing 85 votes adrift in second place.

Continue reading »
Posted in News | Also tagged and | 35 Comments
Advert

Recent Comments

  • Iain Donaldson
    Matt, I think my article actually agrees with parts of what you are saying. In particular, I accept that housing policy operates over long timescales and that l...
  • Mohamed BENALIA
    A thought-provoking article. The debate over greyhound racing raises important questions about animal welfare, public opinion, and how traditions should evolve...
  • Caracatus
    My theory is that the new divide in politics in not left vs right, not libertarian vs authoritarian but between people who see the value of collective action an...
  • Caracatus
    I am stunned by the hostility to the green party which indicate to me that Lib Dems just don't get it. Bristol is mentioned, a City where the Lib Dems had 38 c...
  • Matt Wardman
    I think Iain makes an interesting challenge, but we are not in a position to judge Labour nationally. 1 - We cannot expect to see "change" work through in le...