1984 City of Edinburgh District Council election

Elections for the City of Edinburgh District Council took place on Thursday 3 May 1984, alongside elections to the councils of Scotland's various other districts.

1984 City of Edinburgh Council election

← 1980 3 May 1984 (1984-05-03) 1988 →

All 62 seats to Edinburgh City Council
32 seats needed for a majority
  First party Second party
 
Party Labour Conservative
Last election 25 31
Seats won 34 22
Seat change Increase9 Decrease9
Popular vote 66,384 56,569
Percentage 38.7% 32.9%
Swing Increase2.7% Decrease7.3%

  Third party Fourth party
 
Party Alliance SNP
Last election 2 2
Seats won 4 2
Seat change Increase2 Steady0
Popular vote 36,867 8,298
Percentage 21.5% 4.8%
Swing Increase10.1% Decrease4.6%

Map of council wards

Council control before election


No overall control

Council control after election


Labour

Following the historic election a red flag was raised above the city chambers, although it was soon taken down.

The election was the first time Labour had ever won a majority on the Edinburgh Council, with the party winning 34 of the City's 62 seats. The Conservatives came second, on 22 seats, whilst the SDP-Liberal Alliance won 4, and the SNP 2. Labour would retain its dominance for the next 23 years, until the 2007 election. Mark Lazarowicz and Nigel Griffiths played prominent roles in the election, and would later both become Edinburgh Members of Parliament for Labour.[1] Alex Wood was the leader of the Labour group.

Following the election a red flag was raised above the Edinburgh City Chambers, but it was taken down after a day.[1]

Aggregate results

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City of Edinburgh District Council election, 1984[1][2][3][4][5]
Party Seats Gains Losses Net gain/loss Seats % Votes % Votes +/−
  Labour 34 11 1  10 38.7 66,384  2.7
  Conservative 22 0 10  10 32.9 56,569  7.3
  Alliance 4 3 1  2 21.5 36,867  10.1
  SNP 2 1 1  0 4.8 8,298  4.6
  Independent 0 0 1  1 0.3 531  1.1
  Other parties 0 0 1  1 0.0 1.8 3,038

Ward Results

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7th, Pilton[3]
Party Candidate Votes %
Labour A. Wood 1,182 89.5
Conservative J. K. M. Gilbert 77 5.8
Alliance H. B. T. Holland 61 4.6
Majority 1,105
Turnout 1,320
Labour hold
31st, North Hailes[3]
Party Candidate Votes %
Labour M. Lazarowicz 1,524
Alliance Joyce Heggie 163
Conservative A. Reid 163
SNP J. Russell 123
Majority 1,361
Turnout 1,973
Labour hold
32nd, South Hailes[3]
Party Candidate Votes %
Labour N. Griffiths 1,228
SNP N. R. MacCallum 273
Conservative Sheila L. Black 201
Alliance J. Bulat 143
Majority 955
Turnout
Labour hold
45th, Portobello[3]
Party Candidate Votes %
Labour G. Kerevan 1,212
Conservative Karin J. C. Dodds 1,069
Independent W. Westwood 531
Alliance Marjorie Jenkins-Thomas 396
SNP J. Leslie 165
Scottish Ecology Joan M. C. Grant 47
Majority 143
Turnout
Labour hold

References

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  1. ^ a b c "30 years since Labour took Edinburgh City Council". Edinburgh Evening News. 8 April 2014. Archived from the original on 15 April 2015. Retrieved 8 April 2015.
  2. ^ "District Council Election Results: Lothian". The Glasgow Herald. 4 May 1984. p. 6.
  3. ^ a b c d e "District Council Election Results: Lothian". The Glasgow Herald. 5 May 1984. p. 4.
  4. ^ "District Council Elections: Key Councils - How the Parties Polled". The Glasgow Herald. 6 May 1988. p. 10.
  5. ^ p.86-91