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2022 Aberdeenshire Council election

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2022 Aberdeenshire Council election
← 2017 5 May 2022 (2022-05-05) 2027 →
All 70 seats to Aberdeenshire Council
36 seats needed for a majority
Registered204,559
Turnout44.7%
  First party Second party
 
Leader Mark Findlater Gwyneth Petrie
Party Conservative SNP
Leader's seat Troup Huntly, Strathbogie and Howe of Alford
Last election 23 seats, 40.1% 21 seats, 28.2%
Seats before 18 16
Seats won 26[note 1] 21
Seat change Increase 3 Steady
Popular vote 30,586[note 1] 27,826
Percentage 33.9% 30.8%
Swing Decrease 6.2% Increase 2.6%
  Third party Fourth party
 
LD
Ind
Leader Peter Argyll N/A
Party Liberal Democrats Independent
Leader's seat Aboyne, Upper Deeside and Donside (defeated) N/A
Last election 14 seats, 14.4% 10 seats, 10.9%
Seats before 13 18
Seats won 14 9
Seat change Steady Decrease 1
Popular vote 13,269 11,967
Percentage 14.7% 13.3%
Swing Increase 0.3% Increase 2.4%
2022 Aberdeenshire Council Election Results Map.
Leader before election

Andy Kille
(Conservatives)
No overall control

Leader after election

Mark Findlater
(Conservatives)
No overall control

Elections to Aberdeenshire Council took place on Thursday 5 May 2022 on the same day as the 31 other Scottish local government elections. As with other Scottish council elections, it was held using single transferable vote (STV) – a form of proportional representation – in which multiple candidates are elected in each ward and voters rank candidates in order of preference.

For the second consecutive election, the Conservatives were returned as the largest party on the council, however they fell short of an overall majority despite gaining three seats on a reduced vote share. The Scottish National Party (SNP) remained the second largest party with 21 seats on an increased vote share from 2017. The Liberal Democrats also recorded no change in councillors, returning 14, on a slightly higher vote share than in 2017. Labour and the Greens lost their only seats on the council and the number of independent councillors returned decreased by one despite the number of votes being cast for these candidates increasing slightly.

The incumbent Conservative-Liberal Democrat-independent administration retained control of the council with Cllr Mark Findlater taking over from the retiring Andy Kille as leader of the council.

Background

[edit]

Previous election

[edit]
Main article: 2017 Aberdeenshire Council election

At the previous election in 2017, the Conservatives were returned as the largest party for the first time. The Liberal Democrats and the Scottish National Party (SNP) had won every previous election in Aberdeenshire following the local government reforms in the 1990s.[2] The Conservatives gained nine seats to hold 23 and leapfrog the SNP who lost seven seats, returning 21 councillors. The Liberal Democrats remained the third-largest party as they gained two seats to hold 14 while the number of independents fell by one to 10. Labour lost one seat to return one councillor and the Greens held their only seat.[3][4]

2017 Aberdeenshire Council election result
Party Seats Vote share
Conservatives 23 40.1%
SNP 21 28.2%
Liberal Democrats 14 14.4%
Independent 10 10.9%
Labour 1 4.4%
Green 1 1.9%

Source:[3][4]

Electoral system

[edit]

The election used the 19 wards created under the Local Governance (Scotland) Act 2004, with 70 councillors being elected. Each ward elected either three or four councillors, using the single transferable vote (STV) electoral system – a form of proportional representation – where candidates are ranked in order of preference.[5]

Composition

[edit]

Since the previous election, several changes in the composition of the council occurred. Most were changes to the political affiliation of councillors including Conservative councillors Colin Pike, Jim Gifford, Lesley Berry, Jeff Hutchison, Mike Roy and Dianne Beagrie; SNP councillor Geva Blackett and Labour councillor Alison Evison, who resigned from their respective parties to become independents.[6][7][8][9][10][11] Conservative councillors Sebastian Leslie and Robbie Withey were suspended from the party over unpaid council tax and assault allegations, respectively.[12][1]

Conservative councillor Sandy Wallace, who resigned from the party and initially became an independent, defected to the Libertarian Party.[13][14] Independent councillor Iain Sutherland joined the Conservatives[15] and SNP councillors Alastair Bews and Leigh Wilson resigned from the party and initially became independents before defecting to the Alba Party.[16] SNP councillor Brian Topping also defected to the Alba Party.[17]

Four by-elections were held. The first was in Inverurie and District in October 2017 and resulted in a Conservative hold.[18] This was followed by an SNP hold in Ellon and District in October 2020.[19] The Conservatives gained a seat from the Lib Dems in East Garioch in June 2021.[20] Finally, the Conservatives gained a second seat, this time from the SNP, in Mid-Formartine in August 2021.[21]

Composition of Aberdeenshire Council
Party 2017 result Dissolution
Conservative 23 18
SNP 21 16
Liberal Democrats 14 13
Independents 10 18[note 2]
Labour 1 0
Green 1 1
Alba N/A 3
Libertarian 0 1

Retiring councillors

[edit]
Retiring councilors
Ward Party Retiring councillor
Troup Independent Hamish Partridge
Fraserburgh and District SNP Charles Buchan
Conservative Andy Kille
Central Buchan Conservative Marion Buchan
SNP Jim Ingram
Peterhead North and Rattray SNP Anne Allan
Peterhead South and Cruden Independent Stephen Calder
Conservative Alan Fakley
Turriff and District Independent Sandy Duncan
West Garioch SNP Victoria Harper
Inverurie and District Independent Lesley Berry
East Garioch Green Martin Ford
Westhill and District Conservative Alistair McKelvie
Huntly, Strathbogie and Howe of Alford Conservative Moira Ingleby
Liberal Democrats John Latham
Aboyne, Upper Deeside and Donside Conservative Paul Gibb
Banchory and Mid-Deeside Liberal Democrats Rosemary Bruce
North Kincardine Liberal Democrats Ian Mollison
Stonehaven and Lower Deeside Libertarian Sandy Wallace
Mearns Liberal Democrats Bill Howatson

Source:[4][22]

Candidates

[edit]

The total number of candidates increased from 116 in 2017 to 135. Unlike the previous election, the SNP did not field the highest number of candidates. After their success in the 2017 election, the Conservatives fielded a total of 33 candidates – 10 more than the previous election – while the number of SNP candidates fell from 34 to 26. Both parties, along with the Liberal Democrats, contested every ward. The number of independent candidates increased by three to 22 while the Lib Dems fielded one candidate in each of the 19 wards – the same as they did five years previous. Labour only contested 11 wards, three fewer than 2017 while the number of Green candidates increased from five to 10. For the first time, the Alba Party (seven), the Scottish Family Party (five) and the Independence for Scotland Party (ISP) (one) fielded candidates in an Aberdeenshire election. The Libertarians again put forward one candidate however the Social Democratic Party (SDP) did not contest the election as they had done in 2017.[4][22]

Results

[edit]
2022 Aberdeenshire Council election result
Party Seats Gains Losses Net gain/loss Seats % Votes % Votes +/−
  Conservative 26[note 1] 3 0 Increase 3 37.1 33.9 30,586[note 1] Decrease 6.2
  SNP 21 2 2 Steady 30.0 30.8 27,826 Increase 2.6
  Liberal Democrats 14 2 2 Steady 20.0 14.7 13,269 Increase 0.3
  Independent 9 3 4 Decrease 1 12.8 13.3 11,967 Increase 2.4
  Labour 0 0 1 Decrease 1 0.0 4.1 3,717 Decrease 0.3
  Scottish Green 0 0 1 Decrease 1 0.0 2.0 1,815 Increase 0.1
  Alba 0 0 0 Steady 0.0 0.7 464 New
  Scottish Family 0 0 0 Steady 0.0 0.6 419 New
  ISP 0 0 0 Steady 0.0 0.0 36 New
  Scottish Libertarian 0 0 0 Steady 0.0 0.0 34 Steady 0.0
Total 70 90,133

Source: [23]

Note: Votes are the sum of first preference votes across all council wards. The net gain/loss and percentage changes relate to the result of the previous Scottish local elections on 4 May 2017. This is because STV has an element of proportionality which is not present unless multiple seats are being elected. This may differ from other published sources showing gain/loss relative to seats held at the dissolution of Scotland's councils.[24][25]

Ward summary

[edit]
Results of the 2022 Aberdeenshire Council election by ward
Ward % Cllrs % Cllrs % Cllrs % Cllrs % Cllrs Total
Cllrs
Con SNP Lib Dem Ind Others
Banff and District 27.8 1 31.9 1 3.8 0 27.0 1 9.4 0 3
Troup 50.2 2 37.3 1 8.5 0 4.1 0 3
Fraserburgh and District 32.4 1 20.0 1 4.8 1 36.0 1 6.7 0 4
Central Buchan 33.3 1 31.1 2 13.0 1 11.3 0 11.3 0 4
Peterhead North and Rattray 26.7 1 29.1 1 3.7 0 38.1 2 2.4 0 4
Peterhead South and Cruden 41.3 1 46.5 1 12.2 1 3
Turriff and District 39.1 2 33.9 1 23.5 1 3.5 0 4
Mid-Formartine 33.3 1 33.7 1 14.9 1 18.2 1 4
Ellon and District 35.6 2 31.7 1 22.0 1 10.7 0 4
West Garioch 27.1 1 29.4 1 12.7 1 17.0 0 13.6 0 3
Inverurie and District 25.7 1 31.1 1 17.0 1 22.5 1 3.8 0 4
East Garioch 27.4 1 41.0 1 9.4 1 14.5 1 7.7 0 4
Westhill and District 39.6 2 25.1 1 26.3 1 9.0 0 4
Huntly, Strathbogie and Howe of Alford 40.4 2 34.5 1 13.9 1 2.7 0 8.4 0 4
Aboyne, Upper Deeside and Donside 34.5 1 21.7 1 17.5 0 22.7 1 3.7 0 3
Banchory and Mid-Deeside 42.7 1 24.0 1 21.5 1 11.8 0 3
North Kincardine 26.9 1 36.2 2 15.5 1 14.3 0 7.1 0 4
Stonehaven and Lower Deeside 32.0 2 27.0 1 22.7 1 8.3 0 10.0 0 4
Mearns 31.8 2 29.0 1 6.5 0 21.0 1 11.8 0 4
Total 33.9 26 30.8 21 14.7 14 13.3 9 7.5 0 70

Source: [23]

Seats changing hands

[edit]

Below is a list of seats which elected a different party or parties from 2017 in order to highlight the change in political composition of the council from the previous election. The list does not include defeated incumbents who resigned or defected from their party and subsequently failed re-election while the party held the seat.

Seats changing hands
Seat 2017 2022
Party Member Party Member
Troup Independent Hamish Partridge Conservative Richard Menard
Fraserburgh and District SNP Brian Topping[Note 1] Liberal Democrats Ann Bell
Central Buchan Independent Norman Smith SNP Geoff Crowson
Peterhead South and Cruden Independent Stephen Calder Liberal Democrats Colin Alexander Simpson
Turriff and District Independent Sandy Duncan Conservative Gordon Lang
Ellon and District SNP Anouk Kloppert[Note 2] Conservative John Crawley
East Garioch Green Martin Ford Independent Jim Gifford
Aboyne, Upper Deeside and Donside Liberal Democrats Peter Argyle Independent Geva Blackett[Note 3]
North Kincardine Labour Alison Evison[Note 4] SNP Catherine Mary Victor
Mearns Liberal Democrats Bill Howatson Independent Alison Evison
Notes
  1. ^
    Note 1: In 2017, Brian Topping was elected as an SNP candidate but later defected to Alba.[16]
  2. ^
    Note 2: Cllr Kloppert successfully stood for election in Aboyne, Upper Deeside and Donside.[23]
  3. ^
    Note 3: In 2017, Geva Blackett was elected as an SNP candidate but later resigned from the party.[9] The SNP held their seat in Aboyne, Upper Deeside and Donside at the 2022 election.
  4. ^
    Note 4: In 2017, Cllr Evison was elected as a Labour candidate but later resigned from the party.[10] She successfully stood for election in Mearns.[23]

Ward results

[edit]

Banff and District

[edit]

The SNP, Conservatives and independent candidate John Cox retained the seats they won at the previous election.

Banff and District − 3 seats
Party Candidate FPv% Count
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
SNP Glen Reynolds (incumbent) 31.9 1,265            
Conservative Stewart Adams 27.8 1,103            
Independent John Cox (incumbent) 19.8 787 834 862 892 921 950 1,023
Independent Mike Roy (incumbent) 7.2 285 299 318 326 368 401 487
Labour James Low 5.0 200 224 234 238 294 365  
Liberal Democrats Sandy Leslie 3.8 150 167 181 199      
Scottish Green Neil Woodward 2.6 105 182 185 214 239    
Alba Iain Cameron 1.8 73 106 108        
Electorate: 9,185   Valid: 3,968   Spoilt: 34   Quota: 993   Turnout: 43.6%  

Source:[26][27]

Troup

[edit]

The SNP retained the seat they won at the previous election while the Conservatives held their seat and gained one from retiring independent councillor Hamish Partridge.

Troup − 3 seats
Party Candidate FPv% Count
1 2 3 4 5
Conservative Mark Findlater (incumbent) 42.5 1,305        
SNP Ross Cassie (incumbent) 37.3 1,144        
Liberal Democrats Ian Bailey 8.5 260 299 378 546  
Conservative Richard Menard 7.7 236 647 675 697 894
Scottish Green Simon Scott 4.1 125 135 300    
Electorate: 7,641   Valid: 3,070   Spoilt: 54   Quota: 768   Turnout: 40.9%  

Source:[28][29]

Fraserburgh and District

[edit]

The Conservatives and independent candidate Doreen Mair retained the seats they won at the previous election while the SNP held one of their two seats and the Liberal Democrats gained one seat from the SNP. In 2017, Brian Topping was elected as an SNP candidate before defecting to the Alba Party.

Fraserburgh and District − 4 seats
Party Candidate FPv% Count
1 2 3 4 5 6
Conservative James Adams 32.4 1,526          
Independent Doreen Mair (incumbent) 32.1 1,509          
SNP Seamus Logan 20.0 941          
Alba Brian Topping (incumbent) 5.8 274 312 385 396    
Liberal Democrats Ann Bell 4.8 228 402 557 574 650 883
Independent Paul Greenall 3.9 182 269 423 444 553  
Scottish Family John McColl 0.9 43 76 94      
Electorate: 11,604   Valid: 4,703   Spoilt: 40   Quota: 941   Turnout: 40.9%  

Source:[30][31]

Central Buchan

[edit]

The Conservatives and Liberal Democrats retained the seats they had won at the previous election while the SNP held their only seat and gained one from independent candidate Norman Smith.

Central Buchan − 4 seats
Party Candidate FPv% Count
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Conservative Hannah Powell 18.7 871 883 885 889 902 1,020      
SNP David Mair 16.0 744 750 774 797 812 862 864 866 901
SNP Geoff Crowson 15.1 705 710 740 788 810 843 844 845 881
Conservative Steve Owen 14.6 679 690 693 697 714 759 831 834  
Liberal Democrats Anne Simpson (incumbent) 13.0 607 613 617 641 715 946      
Independent Norman Smith (incumbent) 11.3 527 535 551 561 597        
Labour Arif Mahmood 4.6 213 215 223 239          
Scottish Green Jamie Cole-Hamilton 2.9 135 138 145            
Alba Charlotte Diana Cross 2.4 111 117              
Scottish Family Joanna Moore 1.4 65                
Electorate: 11,170   Valid: 4,657   Spoilt: 85   Quota: 932   Turnout: 42.5%  

Source:[32][33]

Peterhead North and Rattray

[edit]

The SNP and independent candidate Alan S. Buchan retained the seats they had won at the previous election. In 2017, independent candidate Dianne Beagrie was elected as a Conservative candidate and Conservative candidate Iain Sutherland was elected as an independent candidate. Cllr Beagrie retained her seat as an independent and the Conservatives retained their seat although Iain Sutherland was not re-elected.

Peterhead North and Rattray − 4 seats
Party Candidate FPv% Count
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
SNP Leanne McWhinnie 29.1 1,222            
Independent Dianne Beagrie (incumbent) 23.2 974            
Conservative Matthew James 14.3 599 610 626 633 637 665 1,125
Independent Alan S. Buchan (incumbent) 13.0 548 605 631 679 741 823 877
Conservative Iain Sutherland (incumbent) 12.5 523 536 554 563 571 589  
Liberal Democrats Kevin Robert Anderson 3.7 156 202 208 225 258    
Alba Trish McPherson 2.4 99 189 194 215      
Independent Sharon Bradford 1.9 79 116 141        
Electorate: 11,821   Valid: 4,200   Spoilt: 68   Quota: 841   Turnout: 36.1%  

Source:[34][35]

Peterhead South and Cruden

[edit]

The SNP and the Conservatives retained the seats they had won at the previous election while the Liberal Democrats gained one seat from retiring independent councillor Stephen Calder.

Peterhead South and Cruden − 3 seats
Party Candidate FPv% Count
1 2 3 4
SNP Stephen William Smith (incumbent) 46.5 1,578      
Conservative George Hall[note 3] 32.5 1,105      
Liberal Democrats Colin Alexander Simpson 12.2 414 783 796 1,110
Conservative Neil Johnstone 8.8 298 371 595  
Electorate: 9,135   Valid: 3,395   Spoilt: 59   Quota: 849   Turnout: 37.8%  

Source:[37][38]

Turriff and District

[edit]

The SNP and Liberal Democrats retained the seats they had won at the previous election while the Conservatives retained one seat and gained one from retiring independent councillor Sandy Duncan.

Turriff and District − 4 seats
Party Candidate FPv% Count
1 2 3 4 5
Conservative Iain Walker Taylor (incumbent) 23.8 1,075        
Liberal Democrats Anne Stirling (incumbent)[note 4] 23.5 1,059        
SNP Alastair Forsyth (incumbent) 17.5 792 798 825 869 1,624
SNP Susan Dubois 16.4 740 741 751 823  
Conservative Gordon Lang 15.3 690 839 881 895 904
Scottish Green Kathryn Louise Vincent 3.5 159 161 186    
Electorate: 10,429   Valid: 4,515   Spoilt: 105   Quota: 904   Turnout: 44.3%  

Source:[39][40]

Mid-Formartine

[edit]

The SNP, Conservatives, Liberal Democrats and independent candidate Paul Johnston retained the seats they won at the previous election.

Mid-Formartine − 4 seats
Party Candidate FPv% Count
1 2 3 4 5
SNP Jenny Nicol 19.2 971 1,597      
Independent Paul Johnston (incumbent) 18.2 916 959 1,131    
Conservative Derek Ritchie 17.4 876 879 897 910 1,648
Conservative Sheila Powell (incumbent) 15.9 803 809 827 837  
Liberal Democrats Andrew Hassan (incumbent) 14.9 752 782 934 1,000 1,048
SNP Kenny Hutchison 14.4 728        
Electorate: 11,612   Valid: 5,046   Spoilt: 85   Quota: 1,010   Turnout: 44.2%  

Source:[41][42]

Ellon and District

[edit]

The Liberal Democrats retained the seat they had won at the previous election while the Conservatives held one and gained one from the SNP and the SNP retained one of their two seats.

Ellon and District − 4 seats
Party Candidate FPv% Count
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Liberal Democrats Isobel Davidson (incumbent) 22.0 1,205            
SNP Louise McAllister (incumbent) 20.8 1,139            
Conservative John Crawley 19.1 1,050 1,063 1,064 1,070 1,140    
Conservative Gillian Owen (incumbent) 16.5 906 935 936 946 993 1,028 1,202
SNP Josh Gall 10.9 599 612 645 772 871 873  
Labour Mark Lappin 6.3 348 370 371 444      
Scottish Green Craig William Stewart 4.4 241 255 258        
Electorate: 11,837   Valid: 5,488   Spoilt: 76   Quota: 1,098   Turnout: 47.0%  

Source:[43][44]

West Garioch

[edit]

The SNP, Liberal Democrats and the Conservatives retained the seats they had won at the previous election.

West Garioch − 3 seats
Party Candidate FPv% Count
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
SNP Moray Grant 29.4 1,247              
Conservative Sam Payne 27.1 1,150              
Liberal Democrats Hazel Smith (incumbent) 12.7 539 561 588 598 683 736 956 1,318
Independent Sheena Lonchay 10.6 451 468 480 493 536 696 773  
Labour Sasha Brydon 7.6 324 348 357 365 425 451    
Independent Sebastian Leslie (incumbent)[note 5] 6.4 273 282 299 306 326      
Scottish Green Anne Mansfield 4.3 182 251 253 279        
Alba Elaine Mitchell 1.7 71 88 89          
Electorate: 9,227   Valid: 4,237   Spoilt: 44   Quota: 1,060   Turnout: 46.4%  

Source:[46][47]

Inverurie and District

[edit]

The SNP, the Conservatives, the Liberal Democrats and independent candidate Judy Margaret Whyte retained the seats they had won at the previous election.

Inverurie and District − 4 seats
Party Candidate FPv% Count
1 2
Conservative David Keating[note 6] 25.7 1,276  
SNP Neil Baillie (incumbent) 24.1 1,200  
Independent Judy Margaret Whyte (incumbent) 22.5 1,120  
Liberal Democrats Marion Ewenson (incumbent) 17.0 843 1,003
SNP Archie Peebles 6.9 343 348
Scottish Green Denise May Rothnie 3.8 187 195
Electorate: 12,128   Valid: 4,969   Spoilt: 83   Quota: 994   Turnout: 41.7%  

Source:[48][49]

East Garioch

[edit]

The SNP, the Liberal Democrats and the Conservatives retained the seats they had won at the previous election while independent candidate Jim Gifford gained a seat from the Greens. In 2017, Cllr Gifford was elected as a Conservative candidate in Mid-Formartine.

East Garioch − 4 seats
Party Candidate FPv% Count
1 2 3 4 5
SNP Glen Reid (incumbent) 41.0 1,727        
Conservative Dominic Lonchay (incumbent) 27.4 1,156        
Liberal Democrats Trevor Booth Mason 9.4 398 564 649 720 1,041
Labour Rosanna Dobbin 7.7 323 496 538 595  
Independent Jim Gifford[note 7] 7.6 321 441 502 763 871
Independent Drew Cullinane 6.9 290 438 476    
Electorate: 10,414   Valid: 4,215   Spoilt: 24   Quota: 844   Turnout: 40.7%  

Source:[50][51]

Westhill and District

[edit]

The Conservatives (2), the SNP (1) and the Liberal Democrats (1) retained the seats they had won at the previous election.

Westhill and District − 4 seats
Party Candidate FPv% Count
1 2 3 4
Conservative Ron McKail (incumbent) 29.0 1,655      
Liberal Democrats Iris Margaret Walker (incumbent) 26.3 1,498      
SNP Fatima Joji 25.1 1,430      
Conservative Craig Miller 10.6 605 1,050 1,135 1,144
Labour Lesley Young 7.6 434 455 604 705
Alba Colin MacKay 0.8 48 53 61 101
ISP Stephen Cameron 0.6 36 38 47 105
Electorate: 12,033   Valid: 5,706   Spoilt: 58   Quota: 1,142   Turnout: 47.9%  

Source:[52][53]

Huntly, Strathbogie and Howe of Alford

[edit]

The Conservatives (2), the SNP (1) and the Liberal Democrats (1) retained the seats they had won at the previous election.

Huntly, Strathbogie and Howe of Alford − 4 seats
Party Candidate FPv% Count
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
SNP Gwyneth Petrie (incumbent) 34.5 1,945            
Conservative Lauren Knight 26.5 1,491            
Conservative Robbie Withey (incumbent)[note 8] 14.0 788 820 1,047 1,055 1,092 1,094 1,277
Liberal Democrats Jeff Goodhall 13.9 784 976 1,021 1,033 1,143    
Labour Bryan Scott Begg 7.8 441 630 651 655 728 735  
Independent Rosie Leagas 2.7 152 264 276 298      
Scottish Libertarian Stuart Whitby 0.6 34 58 62        
Electorate: 12,148   Valid: 5,635   Spoilt: 79   Quota: 1,128   Turnout: 47.0%  

Source:[54][55]

Aboyne, Upper Deeside and Donside

[edit]

The Conservatives and the SNP retained the seats they had won at the previous election. In 2017, Geva Blackett was elected as an SNP candidate but subsequently resigned from the party. She retained her seat as an independent candidate while the Liberal Democrats lost their seat.

Aboyne, Upper Deeside and Donside − 3 seats
Party Candidate FPv% Count
1 2 3 4 5 6
Independent Geva Blackett (incumbent)[note 9] 22.7 1,098 1,127 1,173 1,272    
SNP Anouk Kloppert[note 10] 21.7 1,049 1,091 1,098 1,104 1,118 1,459
Conservative Sarah Brown 21.3 1,029 1,040 1,571      
Liberal Democrats Peter Argyle (incumbent) 17.5 846 908 950 1,064 1,091  
Conservative Claudia Leith 13.2 640 653        
Labour John Lawson 3.7 179          
Electorate: 9,066   Valid: 4,841   Spoilt: 40   Quota: 1,211   Turnout: 53.8%  

Source:[57][58]

Banchory and Mid-Deeside

[edit]

The Conservatives, the SNP and the Liberal Democrats retained the seats they won at the previous election.

Banchory and Mid-Deeside − 3 seats
Party Candidate FPv% Count
1 2 3 4
Conservative Ann Ross (incumbent)[note 11] 25.1 1,211      
SNP Eileen Durno (incumbent) 24.0 1,158 1,158 1,161 1,264
Liberal Democrats Yi-Pei Chou Turvey 21.5 1,040 1,040 1,049 1,340
Conservative Harriet Cross 17.6 852 854 867 924
Labour Andy Brown 11.1 536 536 542  
Scottish Family Graeme Craib 0.7 35 35    
Electorate: 9,105   Valid: 4,832   Spoilt: 38   Quota: 1,209   Turnout: 53.5%  

Source:[60][61]

North Kincardine

[edit]

The Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats retained the seats they had won at the previous election while the SNP retained their seat and gained one from Labour. In 2017, independent candidates Colin Pike and Alastair Bews were elected as Conservative and SNP councillors respectively before resigning from their parties. Neither was re-elected.

North Kincardine − 4 seats
Party Candidate FPv% Count
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
SNP David Aitchison[note 12] 21.6 1,182                
Conservative Shirley Burnett 15.6 855 856 863 898 906 1,457      
Liberal Democrats Mel Sullivan 15.5 850 852 864 896 993 1,016 1,126    
SNP Catherine Mary Victor[note 13] 14.6 799 865 870 903 1,052 1,053 1,059 1,064 1,214
Conservative Jeff Hutchison[note 14] 11.3 620 621 626 633 637        
Independent Colin Pike (incumbent) 9.6 527 528 534 649 684 718 804 815  
Scottish Green Louise Claire Ross 5.7 314 319 335 348          
Independent Alastair Bews (incumbent) 4.7 255 259 269            
Scottish Family Elizabeth Wilson Leslie 1.4 75 76              
Electorate: 12,478   Valid: 5,477   Spoilt: 80   Quota: 1,096   Turnout: 44.5%  

Source:[63][64]

Stonehaven and Lower Deeside

[edit]

The Conservatives (2), the SNP (1) and the Liberal Democrats (1) retained the seats they had won at the previous election.

Stonehaven and Lower Deeside − 4 seats
Party Candidate FPv% Count
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Liberal Democrats Sarah Dickinson (incumbent) 22.7 1,263              
Conservative Wendy Agnew (incumbent) 20.6 1,147              
SNP Dawn Black 17.1 951 968 969 1,024 1,104 1,215    
Conservative Alan Turner 11.3 630 652 677 681 721 852 854 1,018
SNP Dennis Robertson (incumbent) 9.9 550 564 564 601 644 721 808  
Independent Ma Simpson 8.3 462 489 491 518 631      
Labour Raymond James Christie 6.9 383 412 415 453        
Scottish Green Rachel Katherine Shanks 3.1 173 192 192          
Electorate: 11,356   Valid: 5,559   Spoilt: 86   Quota: 1,112   Turnout: 49.7%  

Source:[65][66]

Mearns

[edit]

The Conservatives (2) and the SNP (1) retained the seats they had won at the previous election while independent candidate Alison Elizabeth McBean Evison gained a seat from the Liberal Democrats. Cllr Evison was previously a councillor for North Kincardine. In 2017, Alba Party candidate Leigh Wilson was elected as an SNP candidate. He was not re-elected.

Mearns − 4 seats
Party Candidate FPv% Count
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
SNP Kevin Stelfox 29.0 1,677                  
Conservative George Carr (incumbent) 21.0 1,217                  
Independent Alison Elizabeth McBean Evison[note 15] 10.8 623 663 667 674 699 730 792 894 1,111 1,349
Conservative Laurie Carnie 10.7 619 625 668 681 689 695 724 741 825 924
Independent Dave Stewart 8.9 513 546 550 558 573 592 622 672    
Liberal Democrats Shona Ewen 6.5 377 413 415 418 422 430 561 680 789  
Labour Yvonne Allan 5.8 336 392 393 396 399 412        
Scottish Green Douglas Fraser 3.4 194 375 376 380 398 447 506      
Alba Leigh Wilson (incumbent) 1.7 99 171 171 179 186          
Independent David Allan Neill 1.3 75 86 86 87            
Scottish Family Diane Elizabeth Laurenson 0.9 52 56 56              
Electorate: 12,170   Valid: 5,782   Spoilt: 57   Quota: 1,157   Turnout: 47.7%  

Source:[67][68]

Aftermath

[edit]

On 18 May 2022, a coalition deal was announced between the Conservatives, Liberal Democrats, and seven aligned independents to form the council administration.[69] The following day, as part of the deal, Cllr Mark Findlater, Conservative councillor for the Troup ward, was appointed council leader with Cllr Anne Stirling from the Liberal Democrats becoming depute leader and Independent councillor Judy Whyte was elected Provost.[70]

In 2023, Peterhead South and Cruden councillor George Hall left the Conservatives to sit as an independent.[36]

The opposition SNP group suspended Cllr Catherine Victor in February 2024 for sharing an anti-Semitic post on social media.[62]

During the council's budget meeting in February 2024, Conservative councillor Ann Ross quit the party to sit as an independent in protest at the proposed budget which would be "detrimental" to her ward.[59]

November 2024 by-elections

[edit]

In September 2024, newly-elected Aberdeenshire North and Moray East MP Seamus Logan stood down as councillor for Fraserburgh and District. His fellow SNP councillors Kevin Stelfox - councillor for Mearns - and David Mair - councillor for Central Buchan - also announced their decisions to stand down.[71] All three by-elections, held on 7 November 2024, were won by the Conservative candidates - Iain Sutherland, Tracey Smith and Peter Chapman.[72]

Fraserburgh and District by-election (7 November 2024) - 1 seat
Party Candidate FPv% Count
1 2 3 4 5
Conservative Iain Sutherland 36.3 1,145 1,158 1,225 1,556 1,884
SNP Mike McDonald 28.4 895 915 966 1,113  
Reform UK Conrad Ritchie 25.9 817 829 864    
Liberal Democrats Sandy Leslie 7.0 222 233      
Scottish Family Dawn Smith 2.2 71        
Electorate: 11,584   Valid: 3,150   Quota: 1,576   Turnout: 27.4%  

Source:[73][74]

Central Buchan by-election (7 November 2024) - 1 seat
Party Candidate FPv% Count
1 2 3 4 5
Conservative Peter Chapman 41.3 1,260 1,272 1,292 1,430 1,614
SNP Sarah Wilken 28.5 869 879 897 925 1,069
Liberal Democrats Ian Bailey 14.3 435 452 463 507  
Reform UK Andrew Curwen 10.8 331 338 358    
Scottish Family Phil Reynolds 2.7 83 89      
Independent Dean Ward 2.3 71        
Electorate: 11,408   Valid: 3,049   Quota: 1,525   Turnout: 27.0%  

Source:[75][76]

Mearns by-election (7 November 2024) - 1 seat
Party Candidate FPv% Count
1 2 3 4
Conservative Tracey Smith 39.2 1,347 1,350 1,494 1,768
SNP Hannah Scott 24.0 823 891 928 1,181
Liberal Democrats Isobel Knights 21.7 745 788 851  
Reform UK Claudia Leith 10.9 375 384    
Scottish Green William Linegar 4.0 136      
Electorate: 12,414   Valid: 3,435   Quota: 1,718   Turnout: 27.8%  

Source:[77][78]

Notes

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c d The Conservatives totals include Cllr Robbie Withey who was suspended from the party in April 2022 but appeared on the ballot as a Conservative candidate as this came after the close of nominations.[1]
  2. ^ Includes 10 aligned independents, one member of the Democratic Independent and Green Group, five independents and two unaligned independents.
  3. ^ In 2023, Cllr Hall left the Conservatives to sit as an independent.[36]
  4. ^ Elected in 2017 as Anne Robertson.
  5. ^ In 2018, West Garioch Conservative councillor Sebastian Leslie was suspended from the party over council tax arrears.[45]
  6. ^ Sitting councillor for East Garioch.
  7. ^ Sitting councillor for Mid-Formartine.
  8. ^ Councillor Robbie Withey was suspended from the Conservative Party in April 2022 after it was alleged he grabbed a man by the throat. As this was after the close of nomination of candidates for the election in May, he still appeared on the ballot as a Conservative candidate.[1]
  9. ^ In August 2021, Aboyne, Upper Deeside and Donside SNP councillor Geva Blackett resigned from the party.[56]
  10. ^ Sitting councillor for Ellon and District.
  11. ^ In 2024, Cllr Ross quit the Conservatives to sit as an independent.[59]
  12. ^ Sitting councillor for West Hill and District.
  13. ^ In 2024, Cllr Victor was suspended by the SNP.[62]
  14. ^ Sitting councillor for Mearns.
  15. ^ Sitting councillor for North Kincardine.

References

[edit]
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