2004 West Oxfordshire District Council election

The 2004 West Oxfordshire District Council election took place on 10 June 2004 to elect members of West Oxfordshire District Council in Oxfordshire, England. One third of the council was up for election and the Conservative Party stayed in overall control of the council.[1]

Map of the results of the 2004 West Oxfordshire District Council election. Conservatives in blue, Liberal Democrats in yellow and independent in light grey. Wards in dark grey were not contested in 2004.

After the election, the composition of the council was:

Background edit

After the last election in 2003 the Conservatives controlled the council with 29 seats, while the Liberal Democrats had 12, there were six Independent councillors and the Labour Party had two seats.[3] A total of 54 candidates stood for the 17 seats up for election in 2004, comprising 16 each for the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats, 11 Labour candidates, nine Green Party and two Independents.[4]

Election result edit

The Conservatives remained in control of the council with 29 councillors, after winning 12 of the 17 seats contested.[5] 13 of the 14 councillors who were standing again were re-elected, with only Conservative councillor James Mills losing his seat in Standlake, Aston and Stanton Harcourt ward to Liberal Democrat Elisabeth Bickley.[4] The Liberal Democrats took four seats and therefore finished with 13 councillors on the council.,[5] while all three members of the Conservative council cabinet were re-elected, including the council leader Barry Norton in North Leigh ward.[6]

Conservative Andrew Creery also gained one seat in Witney Central from Labour, after the Labour councillor for the previous 30 years, Ted Cooper, stood down at the election.[6] This reduced Labour to its worst ever position on the council with just one councillor.[6] Meanwhile, independent councillor Derrick Millard retained his seat in Stonesfield and Tackley, to mean there remained six independent councillors.[4] Overall turnout at the election was 45.19%.[4]

West Oxfordshire local election result 2004[4][7]
Party Seats Gains Losses Net gain/loss Seats % Votes % Votes +/−
  Conservative 12 1 1 0 70.6 46.5 10,996 +7.9%
  Liberal Democrats 4 1 0 +1 23.5 30.4 7,180 -0.1%
  Independent 1 0 0 0 5.9 5.8 1,360 -8.2%
  Labour 0 0 1 -1 0 10.2 2,419 -1.0%
  Green 0 0 0 0 0 7.1 1,686 +2.3%

Ward results edit

Chadlington and Churchill[4]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Terence Owen 499 66.0 +0.5
Liberal Democrats Elizabeth Leffman 152 20.1 -14.4
Labour Georgina Burrows 105 13.9 +13.9
Majority 347 45.9 +15.0
Turnout 756 49.9 +9.9
Conservative hold Swing
Charlbury and Finstock[4]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal Democrats Glena Chadwick 985 66.7 +4.5
Conservative Ian Lyne 491 33.3 +33.3
Majority 494 33.5 +3.9
Turnout 1,476 50.9 +9.7
Liberal Democrats hold Swing
Chipping Norton[4]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Michael Howes 964 49.0 +9.5
Labour Mark Walker 478 24.3 -22.3
Liberal Democrats Elizabeth Allen 363 18.4 +4.4
Green Rachel Griffiths 163 8.3 +8.3
Majority 486 24.7
Turnout 1,968 44.1 +8.2
Conservative hold Swing
Eynsham and Cassington[4]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal Democrats Margaret Stevens 1,045 54.8 -3.0
Conservative Frances Pike 662 34.7 +0.4
Green Xanthe Bevis 201 10.5 +2.6
Majority 383 20.1 -3.3
Turnout 1,908 43.0 +10.5
Liberal Democrats hold Swing
Freeland and Hanborough[4]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal Democrats Stuart Brooks 935 55.9
Conservative Jill Dunsmore 737 44.1
Majority 198 11.8
Turnout 1,672 52.1 +6.0
Liberal Democrats hold Swing
Hailey, Minster Lovell and Leafield[4]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Simon Hoare 942 68.3 +3.3
Liberal Democrats Malcolm West 306 22.2 -12.8
Labour William Tumbridge 131 9.5 +9.5
Majority 636 46.1 +16.0
Turnout 1,379 44.9 +8.6
Conservative hold Swing
Kingham, Rollright and Enstone[4]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Anthony Walker 899 62.1 +1.2
Liberal Democrats Christopher Tatton 286 19.8 -0.2
Labour Melanie Deans 262 18.1 -0.9
Majority 613 42.4 +1.5
Turnout 1,447 46.0 +11.3
Conservative hold Swing
Milton under Wychwood[4]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Jeffrey Haine 571 74.2 -2.2
Liberal Democrats John Lilly 199 25.8 +2.2
Majority 372 48.3 -4.5
Turnout 770 49.2 +5.4
Conservative hold Swing
North Leigh[4]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Barry Norton 513 60.2
Liberal Democrats Philip Workman 200 23.5
Labour Helen Bridge 139 16.3
Majority 313 36.7
Turnout 852 56.3
Conservative hold Swing
Standlake, Aston and Stanton Harcourt[4]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal Democrats Elisabeth Bickley 831 51.7
Conservative James Mills 775 48.3
Majority 56 3.4 N/A
Turnout 1,606 52.1 +9.0
Liberal Democrats gain from Conservative Swing
Stonesfield and Tackley[4]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Independent Derrick Millard 1,060 69.3 -0.6
Liberal Democrats Gillian Workman 249 16.3 -0.2
Green Susan Turnbull 220 14.4 +0.8
Majority 811 53.0 -0.5
Turnout 1,529 48.8 +12.8
Independent hold Swing
Witney Central[4]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Andrew Creery 524 42.9 +14.2
Labour Richard Kelsall 339 27.7 +2.8
Liberal Democrats June Taylor 217 17.8 +4.6
Green Sandra Simpson 142 11.6 +8.4
Majority 185 15.2 N/A
Turnout 1,222 41.1 +1.7
Conservative gain from Labour Swing
Witney East[4]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Frank Smith 710 49.4 +16.8
Liberal Democrats Peter Madden 341 23.7 -27.2
Green Enid Dossett-Davies 218 15.2 +9.3
Labour Raymond Harris 169 11.8 +1.3
Majority 369 25.7
Turnout 1,438 38.3 +6.8
Conservative hold Swing
Witney North[4]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Martin Chapman 569 45.2 +6.7
Green Richard Dossett-Davies 324 25.7 +5.9
Liberal Democrats Paul Slamin 239 19.0 -22.7
Labour Diana Kelsall 128 10.2 +10.2
Majority 245 19.5
Turnout 1,260 41.1 +6.4
Conservative hold Swing
Witney South[4]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Peter Green 863 52.7 +21.7
Labour Phillip Edney 317 19.3 +2.3
Liberal Democrats Olive Minett 282 17.2 +6.6
Green Jill Jones 177 10.8 +5.8
Majority 546 33.3 +27.7
Turnout 1,639 36.3 +6.8
Conservative hold Swing
Witney West[4]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Louise Chapman 574 51.3 +9.5
Independent Ian Lucas 300 26.8 +1.9
Labour David Wesson 142 12.7 -1.6
Green Christopher Marchant 102 9.1 +2.8
Majority 274 24.5 +7.6
Turnout 1,118 37.0 +13.0
Conservative hold Swing
Woodstock and Bladon[4]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Ian Hudspeth 703 43.9
Liberal Democrats Elizabeth Poskitt 550 34.4
Labour Susan Roberts 209 13.1
Green Tracy Dighton-Brown 139 8.7
Majority 153 9.5
Turnout 1,601 53.7 +5.8
Conservative hold Swing

By-elections between 2004 and 2006 edit

Witney East by-election 7 July 2005[4]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Roger Curry 420 50.5 +1.1
Liberal Democrats Daniel Coulson 253 30.4 +6.7
Green Enid Dossett-Davies 109 13.1 -2.1
Labour David Wesson 49 5.9 -5.9
Majority 167 20.1 -5.6
Turnout 831 19.8 -18.5
Conservative hold Swing

References edit

  1. ^ "West Oxfordshire council". BBC News Online. 11 June 2004. Retrieved 10 August 2015.
  2. ^ "West Oxfordshire". The Guardian. NewsBank. 12 June 2004.
  3. ^ "Local elections". BBC News Online. Retrieved 11 August 2015.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w "West Oxfordshire District Council Election Results 1998 - 2010" (PDF). West Oxfordshire District Council. Archived from the original (PDF) on 5 October 2015. Retrieved 10 August 2015.
  5. ^ a b "Tories keep a grip in poll". Worcestershire, West Midlands, Herefordshire, and Shropshire Counties Publications. NewsBank. 17 June 2004.
  6. ^ a b c "Election 2004: Tories strengthen in West". Oxfordshire County Publications. NewsBank. 11 June 2004.
  7. ^ "Ballot box - Elections". The Times. NewsBank. 12 June 2004. p. 26.