10/07/2008 Election candidates (10 elections this day)

[Iain Lindley]

West Wiltshire is a Con gain

Con 452
LD 366

[tonygreaves]

Not a good night for the Liberal Democrats overall. We should have won the Kirklees seat - I will find out the background in due course (probably when I get back off holiday!)

Tony Greaves

[middle englander]

West Wilts low relatively turnout of circa 62%.  Conservative vote up marginally with share 22% higher and a swing from Lib Dems of 9%.  A straight fight with no Independent standing.

Overall across the 9 English by-elections the results can be summarised by:

                               Contested        Defended         Retained       Gained        Lost         Won

Conservatives                 9                    3                     3              2              0              5
Labour                           6                    4                     3              0              1              3
Lib Dems                        8                    2                     1              0              1              1
Others                           8                    0                     0              0              0              0

In addition Plaid Cymru gained a seat from Lib Dems in Wales whilst Labour held another one with a 3% swing to them from Plaid.  So across the 11 by-elections, 3 (or almost 30% again) changed hands.     

Update 15th July.  The above table has been amended to incorporate the Labour hold in Blyth. 

[Andrea]

Blyth Valley local paper's website has this news on their homepage:

Labour wins by-election

11 July 2008
By TEGAN CHAPMAN
A LABOUR party candidate has won the seat for the Croft Ward in a by-election.
Coun Deidre Campbell won the by-election yesterday.

Deirdre, who is married to Blyth Valley MP Ronnie Campbell, won the election with a 160 majority on Thursday, July 11.

Ronnie Campbell said: "It was a great victory for Labour and it was good that my wife won the by election for the Croft Ward."

Not sure what kind of byelection it is. They don't explain it. One of the 3 BV DC Croft coucillors died last April, but it doesn't seem any mention of a byelection on the council website either.

[Trident]

Blyth Valley local paper's website has this news on their homepage:

Labour wins by-election

11 July 2008
By TEGAN CHAPMAN
A LABOUR party candidate has won the seat for the Croft Ward in a by-election.
Coun Deidre Campbell won the by-election yesterday.

Deirdre, who is married to Blyth Valley MP Ronnie Campbell, won the election with a 160 majority on Thursday, July 11.

Ronnie Campbell said: "It was a great victory for Labour and it was good that my wife won the by election for the Croft Ward."

Not sure what kind of byelection it is. They don't explain it. One of the 3 BV DC Croft coucillors died last April, but it doesn't seem any mention of a byelection on the council website either.

Strange - although Blyth Valley Council is a lame duck authority - it's being abolished next April to be replaced by the new Northumberland Unitary Authority.

[DBIV]

It is presumably Les Smith's old seat on the district council, which will be abolished next year. Vince Coils was elected to the Croft seat on the county council in May and still holds it. There are no parish councils in Blyth Valley.

[Paul Tinnion]

Blyth Valley, Croft

Campbell (Lab) 439
Condon (Ind) 266
Bewlay (Lib Dem) 176
Waggitt (Con) 32

Condon and a friend called this by-election which nobody else wanted.

[OldWarHorse]

I am very pleased with the Kirklees result

My old mate Peter McBride (a good Boro fan himself) was defeated at the polls in May after a long political career, and now here we are, two months later, and he is back - in the same ward!

The comeback King

(Actually I have got a vague recollection that he might have lost before and then come back, but presumably he had to wait the 12 months last time)

It is a funny old game, as they say