2006 Wakefield Metropolitan District Council election

The 2006 Wakefield Metropolitan District Council election took place on 4 May 2006 to elect members of Wakefield Metropolitan District Council in West Yorkshire, England. One third of the council was up for election and the Labour party kept overall control of the council.[1]

2006 local election results in Wakefield

After the election, the composition of the council was

Campaign

edit

Before the election Labour had 44 seats, the Conservatives 10, independents 6 and the Liberal Democrats 3 seats.[3] 75 candidates stood in the election for the 21 seats that were being contested,[3] with Labour very unlikely to lose control of the council, which was the only council in West Yorkshire they still had a majority on.[4]

Election result

edit

The results saw the Conservatives gain 4 seats, 3 from Labour and 1 from an independent.[5][6] Labour were defeated in Horbury and South Ossett, Pontefract South and Wrenthorpe and Outwood West wards,[5] with the losses blamed by the Labour leader on national issues.[7] The other Conservative gain came in Wakefield South where they defeated independent councillor Norman Hazell by 17 votes.[5][8] Hazell was a former Conservative member who had left the party in 2001 to sit as an independent councillor.[5] However the other independent member managed to hold his seat in Featherstone despite a strong challenge from Labour.[5]

Wakefield Local Election Result 2006[2][9][10]
Party Seats Gains Losses Net gain/loss Seats % Votes % Votes +/−
  Labour 13 0 3 -3 61.9 41.7 32,765 -4.0%
  Conservative 6 4 0 +4 28.6 29.1 22,832 -0.7%
  Liberal Democrats 1 0 0 0 4.8 9.4 7,375 +1.1%
  Independent 1 0 1 -1 4.8 7.6 5,962 -2.3%
  BNP 0 0 0 0 0 10.7 8,426 +6.7%
  Green 0 0 0 0 0 1.1 861 +0.6%
  Socialist Alternative 0 0 0 0 0 0.3 231 -0.3%
  UKIP 0 0 0 0 0 0.2 128 -0.9%

Ward results

edit
Ackworth, North Elmsall and Upton[9][10]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Sarah Balfour 1,707 41.6
Conservative Andrew Crowther 1,285 31.3
Independent John Evans 566 13.8
Liberal Democrats Oliver Wadsworth 543 13.2
Majority 422 10.3
Turnout 4,101
Labour hold Swing
Airedale and Ferry Fryston[9][10]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Linda Broom 1,655 58.0
BNP Stephen Rogerson 709 24.9
Conservative Eamonn Mullins 489 17.1
Majority 946 33.1
Turnout 2,853
Labour hold Swing
Altofts and Whitwood[9][10]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Darran Travis 1,717 49.6
BNP Loraine Frazer 682 19.7
Liberal Democrats Michael Burch 572 16.5
Conservative Tom Dixon 490 14.2
Majority 1,035 29.9
Turnout 3,461
Labour hold Swing
Castleford Central and Glasshoughton[9][10]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Denise Jeffery 1,884 52.8
BNP Rita Robinson 876 24.6
Liberal Democrats Michael Mann 475 13.3
Conservative Rebecca Mullins 333 9.3
Majority 1,008 28.2
Turnout 3,568
Labour hold Swing
Crofton, Ryhill and Walton[9][10]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Graham Isherwood 1,594 35.9
Conservative Adam Parry 1,247 28.1
BNP Dean Crossland 868 19.6
Independent Janice Power 729 16.4
Majority 347 7.8
Turnout 4,438
Labour hold Swing
Featherstone[9][10]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Independent Roy Bickerton 2,207 50.1
Labour Margaret Isherwood 1,871 42.5
Conservative Jean Molloy 326 7.4
Majority 336 7.6
Turnout 4,404
Independent hold Swing
Hemsworth[9][10]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Tracey Hardwick 1,773 66.1
Conservative Christian l'Anson 908 33.9
Majority 865 32.2
Turnout 2,681
Labour hold Swing
Horbury and South Ossett[9][10]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative John Sharp 1,411 34.3
Labour David Watts 1,245 30.3
Liberal Democrats Mark Goodair 873 21.2
BNP John Aveyard 582 14.2
Majority 166 4.0
Turnout 4,111
Conservative gain from Labour Swing
Knottingley[9][10]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Patricia Doyle 1,673 64.1
Conservative Nathan Garbutt 937 35.9
Majority 736 28.2
Turnout 2,610
Labour hold Swing
Normanton[9][10]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Susan Blezard 1,370 43.3
BNP Adam Frazer 667 21.1
Independent William Wood 432 13.6
Conservative Tony Ayoade 426 13.5
Liberal Democrats Jack Smith 272 8.6
Majority 703 22.2
Turnout 3,167
Labour hold Swing
Ossett[9][10]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal Democrats Peter Walker 1,752 38.7
Labour Gwendoline Page 1,179 26.0
BNP Suzy Cass 806 17.8
Conservative Tony Homewood 794 17.5
Majority 573 12.7
Turnout 4,531
Liberal Democrats hold Swing
Pontefract North[9][10]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Clive Tennant 1,757 62.0
Conservative Mellisa Wan Omer 1,077 38.0
Majority 680 24.0
Turnout 2,834
Labour hold Swing
Pontefract South[9][10]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Geoffrey Walsh 1,852 42.2
Labour James Nicholson 1,810 41.2
Independent Clive Wigham 730 16.6
Majority 42 1.0
Turnout 4,392
Conservative gain from Labour Swing
South Elmsall and South Kirkby[9][10]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Laurie Harrison 2,482 73.3
Conservative Sheila Scholes 902 26.7
Majority 1,580 46.6
Turnout 3,384
Labour hold Swing
Stanley and Outwood[9][10]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Jacqueline Williams 1,246 33.5
Conservative Graham Ridler 986 26.5
BNP Glenn Fothergill 777 20.9
Liberal Democrats David Evans 706 19.0
Majority 260 7.0
Turnout 3,715
Labour hold Swing
Wakefield East[9][10]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Olivia Rowley 1,541 44.2
Conservative Andrew Pesterfield 648 18.6
Liberal Democrats Ather Mohammed 540 15.5
BNP Dawn Byrom 528 15.1
Socialist Alternative Michael Griffiths 231 6.6
Majority 893 25.6
Turnout 3,488
Labour hold Swing
Wakefield North[9][10]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Keith Rhodes 1,356 38.9
Conservative Angela Holwell 774 22.2
Liberal Democrats Douglas Dale 621 17.8
BNP Graham Thewlis-Hardy 609 17.5
UKIP Keith Wells 128 3.7
Majority 582 16.7
Turnout 3,488
Labour hold Swing
Wakefield Rural[9][10]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative June Drysdale 2,471 51.1
Labour Hazel Chowcat 1,507 31.1
Green John Lumb 861 17.8
Majority 964 20.0
Turnout 4,839
Conservative hold Swing
Wakefield South[9][10]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Nadeen Ahmed 1,315 29.4
Independent Norman Hazell 1,298 29.0
Labour Charles Keith 747 16.7
BNP Neville Poynton 594 13.3
Liberal Democrats Stephen Huthall 521 11.6
Majority 17 0.4
Turnout 4,475
Conservative gain from Independent Swing
Wakefield West[9][10]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative David Stone 2,318 57.1
Labour Anthony Richardson 1,241 30.6
Liberal Democrats Susan Morgan 500 12.3
Majority 1,077 26.5
Turnout 4,059
Conservative hold Swing
Wrenthorpe and Outwood West[9][10]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Betty Liles 1,843 46.3
Labour Rosaline Lund 1,410 35.4
BNP Grant Rowe 728 18.3
Majority 433 10.9
Turnout 3,981
Conservative gain from Labour Swing

References

edit
  1. ^ "Local elections: Wakefield". BBC News Online. Retrieved 9 December 2009.
  2. ^ a b "Local elections". The Times. 6 May 2006. p. 64. ISSN 0140-0460.
  3. ^ a b "UK's eyes on us as council faces the litmus test". Yorkshire Evening Post. 5 April 2006. ISSN 0963-2255.
  4. ^ "Parties battle to regain control". BBC News Online. 27 April 2006. Retrieved 9 December 2009.
  5. ^ a b c d e "Coalition keeps its grip on city". Yorkshire Evening Post. 6 May 2006. ISSN 0963-2255.
  6. ^ "No surprises in election results". BBC News Online. 5 May 2006. Retrieved 9 December 2009.
  7. ^ "Tories gain Wakefield seats". Wakefield Express. 5 May 2006. Retrieved 9 December 2009.[permanent dead link]
  8. ^ "Stalwart is ousted in elections". Wakefield Express. 5 May 2006. Retrieved 9 December 2009.[permanent dead link]
  9. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v "Local Election Results May 2006". Wakefield Metropolitan District Council. Archived from the original on 27 September 2006. Retrieved 9 December 2009.
  10. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v "Local election results 2006". Yorkshire Evening Post. 6 May 2006. ISSN 0963-2255.