2003 Craven District Council election
The 2003 Craven District Council election took place on 1 May 2003 to elect members of Craven District Council in North Yorkshire, England. One third of the council was up for election and the council stayed under no overall control.[1]
After the election, the composition of the council was:
Background
[edit]Before the election the Conservatives were the largest group with 13 seats, while there 9 Liberal Democrats and 8 independents.[3] However the council was controlled by an alliance between independents and Liberal Democrats.[3]
10 of the 30 seats on the council were elected in 2003, with the Conservatives defending 6, independents 3 and the Liberal Democrats defended 1 seat.[3] Two of the three independents were re-elected without opposition.[3]
Election result
[edit]Independents gained 2 seats from the Conservatives to mean there were 10 independent councillors on the council.[4] The independent gains from the Conservatives came in Skipton East where Mike Hill was elected, and in West Craven where Robert Mason gained a seat.[5] Meanwhile, another independent, Robert Heseltine, regained a seat on the council 3 years after having been forced to resign his seat due to being convicted of falsifying accounts, after defeating the sitting independent councillor Frances Cook by 217 votes in Skipton South.[5]
Despite losing 2 seats the Conservatives remained the largest group on the council with 11 councillors, after holding another 4 seats.[5] Meanwhile, the Liberal Democrats stayed on 9 seats, after holding the only seat they had been defending in Skipton West.[5]
| Party | Seats | Gains | Losses | Net gain/loss | Seats % | Votes % | Votes | +/− | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Independent | 5 | 2 | 0 | +2 | 50.0 | 30.0 | 2,020 | -0.9% | |
| Conservative | 4 | 0 | 2 | -2 | 40.0 | 45.7 | 3,079 | +5.6% | |
| Liberal Democrats | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10.0 | 24.3 | 1,633 | -3.8% | |
Ward results
[edit]| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Gerald Hurtley | 521 | 51.5 | ||
| Independent | Manuel Camacho | 490 | 48.5 | ||
| Majority | 31 | 3.1 | |||
| Turnout | 1,011 | ||||
| Conservative hold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | John Quinn | 404 | 67.0 | ||
| Independent | Dennis Hall | 199 | 33.0 | ||
| Majority | 205 | 34.0 | |||
| Turnout | 603 | ||||
| Conservative hold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | David Crawford | 596 | 58.5 | ||
| Liberal Democrats | Andrew Wood | 422 | 41.5 | ||
| Majority | 174 | 17.1 | |||
| Turnout | 1,018 | ||||
| Conservative hold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Independent | Roger Nicholson | unopposed | |||
| Independent hold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Independent | Michael Hill | 423 | 41.7 | ||
| Conservative | Pamela Heseltine | 320 | 31.5 | ||
| Liberal Democrats | Darren Moorby | 272 | 26.8 | ||
| Majority | 103 | 10.1 | |||
| Turnout | 1,015 | ||||
| Independent gain from Conservative | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Marcia Turner | 604 | 56.4 | ||
| Liberal Democrats | Andrew Rankine | 466 | 43.6 | ||
| Majority | 138 | 12.9 | |||
| Turnout | 1,070 | ||||
| Conservative hold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Independent | Robert Heseltine | 412 | 57.5 | ||
| Independent | Frances Cook | 195 | 27.2 | ||
| Conservative | Kenneth Creek | 110 | 15.3 | ||
| Majority | 217 | 30.3 | |||
| Turnout | 717 | ||||
| Independent gain from Independent | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liberal Democrats | Pauline English | 473 | 67.0 | ||
| Conservative | Paul Whitaker | 233 | 33.0 | ||
| Majority | 240 | 34.0 | |||
| Turnout | 706 | ||||
| Liberal Democrats hold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Independent | Kenneth Hart | unopposed | |||
| Independent hold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Independent | Robert Mason | 301 | 50.8 | +16.2 | |
| Conservative | John Binns | 291 | 49.2 | +5.6 | |
| Majority | 10 | 1.7 | |||
| Turnout | 592 | ||||
| Independent gain from Conservative | Swing | ||||
By-elections between 2003 and 2004
[edit]A by-election was held in Bentham on 13 November 2003 after the resignation of Liberal Democrat councillor John Pilkington on his being charged by police with child pornography.[7][8] The seat was gained by an independent Manuel Camacho with a majority of 107 votes over Conservative John Jackson.[7][8]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Independent | Manuel Camacho | 474 | 56.4 | +7.9 | |
| Conservative | John Jackson | 367 | 43.6 | −7.9 | |
| Majority | 107 | 12.8 | N/A | ||
| Turnout | 841 | 29.6 | |||
| Independent gain from Liberal Democrats | Swing | ||||
References
[edit]- ^ "Local elections". BBC News Online. Retrieved 12 March 2015.
- ^ a b "Election results". Financial Times. NewsBank. 2 May 2003. p. 4.
- ^ a b c d "Craven: Contests in 8 wards". Cumbria County Publications. NewsBank. 11 April 2003.
- ^ Robinson-Tate, Michaela (2 May 2003). "Election: Craven results". Cumbria County Publications. NewsBank.
- ^ a b c d "Councillor wins back seat after criminal conviction". West Yorkshire and North Yorkshire Counties Publications. NewsBank. 2 May 2003.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "Craven District Council - Election results". Craven District Council. Political Science Resources. Archived from the original on 12 March 2015. Retrieved 12 March 2015.
- ^ a b c "Election for seat of accused councillor". West Yorkshire and North Yorkshire Counties Publications. NewsBank. 24 October 2003.
- ^ a b c "Independents win in byelection polls". Press Association. The Guardian. 14 November 2003. Retrieved 13 March 2015.
