1977 Kilmarnock and Loudoun District Council election

1977 Kilmarnock and Loudoun District Council election
← 1974 3 May 1977 (1977-05-03) 1980 →
All 16 seats to Kilmarnock and Loudoun District Council
9 seats needed for a majority
Registered61,152
Turnout51.1%
  First party Second party Third party
 
Lab
Con
SNP
Party Labour Conservative SNP
Last election 12 seats, 54.9% 4 seats, 30.8% N/A
Seats won 7 7 2
Seat change Decrease 5 Increase 3 Increase 2
Popular vote 12,000 10,028 8,032
Percentage 38.6% 32.2% 25.8%
Swing Decrease 16.3 Increase 1.4 Increase 25.8
Council Leader before election


Labour

Council Leader after election

TBD

Elections to Kilmarnock and Loudoun District Council were held on 3 May 1977, on the same day as the other Scottish local government elections. This was the second election to the district council following the local government reforms in 1974.

The election used the original 16 wards created by the Formation Electoral Arrangements in 1974. Each ward elected one councillor using first-past-the-post voting.[1]

Labour won the popular vote despite their vote share decreasing by 16.3% and, as a result, lost overall control of the district council. The party lost five seats to hold seven – two short of an overall majority. The Conservatives tied as the joint-largest party with Labour on seven seats – an increase of three from previous election in 1974. For the first time, the Scottish National Party (SNP) won seats in Kilmarnock and Loudoun as they took the remaining two seats which put them in position as the kingmaker.

Results

1977 Kilmarnock and Loudoun District Council election result
Party Seats Gains Losses Net gain/loss Seats % Votes % Votes +/−
  Labour 7 0 5 Decrease 5 43.7 38.6 12,000 Decrease 16.3
  Conservative 7 3 0 Increase 3 43.7 32.2 10,028 Increase 1.4
  SNP 2 2 0 Increase 2 12.5 25.8 8,032 New
  Liberal 0 0 0 Steady 0.0 2.4 734 Decrease 11.2
  SLP 0 0 0 Steady 0.0 0.8 241 New
  Independent 0 0 0 Steady 0.0 0.2 62 New
Total 16 31,097

Source:[2][3]

Ward results

Ward 1

Ward 1
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
SNP R. Brown 1,139 45.3 New
Labour J. Raphael 901 35.9 Decrease 32.3
Conservative C. Peever 472 18.8 Decrease 13.1
Majority 238 9.4 N/A
Turnout 2,512 54.5 Increase 9.0
Registered electors 4,613
SNP gain from Labour Swing Increase 38.8

Source:[2][3]

Ward 2

Ward 2
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour R. Creighton 968 60.7 Increase 0.1
Liberal P. McMillan 626 39.3 Increase 15.4
Majority 342 21.4 Decrease 15.3
Turnout 1,594 42.7 Decrease 6.7
Registered electors 3,795
Labour hold Swing Decrease 7.6

Source:[2][3]

Ward 3

Ward 3
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour J. Hunter 917 44.9 Decrease 28.9
SNP R. Brailsford 700 34.3 New
Conservative J. Steele 424 20.8 Decrease 5.4
Majority 217 10.6 Decrease 37.0
Turnout 2,041 48.8 Increase 5.8
Registered electors 4,206
Labour hold Swing Decrease 31.6

Source:[2][3]

Ward 4

Ward 4
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative R. Ledgerwood 782 38.1 Decrease 3.8
SNP J. Langlands 678 33.0 New
Labour B. McAree 484 23.6 Decrease 7.0
Liberal T. Purdon 108 5.3 Decrease 12.4
Majority 104 5.1 Decrease 6.2
Turnout 2,052 51.7 Increase 6.2
Registered electors 3,978
Conservative hold Swing Decrease 18.4

Source:[2][3]

Ward 5

Ward 5
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour J. Anderson 1,040 52.1 Decrease 25.9
SNP C. Calman 957 47.9 New
Majority 83 4.2 Decrease 60.8
Turnout 1,997 51.6 Increase 4.9
Registered electors 3,895
Labour hold Swing Decrease 36.9

Source:[2][3]

Ward 6

Ward 6
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative M. Parker 1,156 56.5 Decrease 0.4
SNP P. Gibson 507 24.8 New
Labour J. Hollywood 383 18.7 Decrease 14.1
Majority 649 21.7 Decrease 2.4
Turnout 2,046 62.0 Increase 4.7
Registered electors 3,304
Conservative hold Swing Decrease 12.6

Source:[2][3]

Ward 7

Ward 7
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative J. Porter 812 35.9 Decrease 8.1
SNP R. Ferguson 756 33.4 New
Labour G. Wallace 634 28.0 Decrease 18.8
Independent T. Ryan 62 2.7 New
Majority 56 2.5 N/A
Turnout 2,264 58.0 Increase 1.1
Registered electors 3,906
Conservative gain from Labour Swing Decrease 20.7

Source:[2][3]

Ward 8

Ward 8
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative M. Porter 1,430 80.9 Increase 14.6
Labour W. Maxwell 337 19.1 Decrease 0.7
Majority 1,093 61.8 Increase 15.3
Turnout 1,767 48.7 Decrease 7.0
Registered electors 3,667
Conservative hold Swing Increase 7.6

Source:[2][3]

Ward 9

Ward 9
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour M. Garven 892 41.7 Decrease 26.4
SNP C. Calderwood 877 41.0 New
Conservative J. Watson 370 17.3 Decrease 1.3
Majority 15 0.7 Decrease 48.8
Turnout 2,139 50.8 Increase 5.6
Registered electors 4,213
Labour hold Swing Decrease 33.7

Source:[2][3]

Ward 10

Ward 10
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
SNP L. Flannigan 983 43.8 New
Labour T. Ferguson 885 39.4 Decrease 32.8
Conservative W. Adams 270 12.0 Decrease 3.8
SLP P. Clark 108 4.8 New
Majority 98 4.4 N/A
Turnout 2,246 48.1 Increase 6.2
Registered electors 4,676
SNP gain from Labour Swing Increase 38.3

Source:[2][3]

Ward 11

Ward 11
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative J. Thomson 1,225 85.7 Increase 28.5
Labour A. McKinlay 204 14.3 Decrease 4.3
Majority 1,021 71.4 Increase 38.4
Turnout 1,429 50.9 Decrease 3.6
Registered electors 2,833
Conservative hold Swing Increase 16.4

Source:[2][3]

Ward 12

Ward 12
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour A. Nisbet 1,237 76.1 Decrease 4.8
Conservative D. MacIntosh 388 23.9 Increase 4.7
Majority 849 52.2 Decrease 9.5
Turnout 1,625 40.7 Decrease 7.6
Registered electors 4,028
Labour hold Swing Decrease 4.7

Source:[2][3]

Ward 13

Ward 13
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative A. MacDougall 973 35.2 Increase 13.1
SNP W. Lamond 915 33.1 New
Labour B. McGeechan 743 26.9 Decrease 19.4
SLP J. McFadden 133 4.8 New
Majority 58 2.1 N/A
Turnout 2,764 63.6 Increase 8.4
Registered electors 4,359
Conservative gain from Labour Swing Increase 16.2

Source:[2][3]

Ward 14

Ward 14
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour A. Lundie 1,059 64.1 Decrease 8.8
Conservative A. Wight 592 35.9 Increase 17.1
Majority 467 28.2 Decrease 25.9
Turnout 1,651 40.1 Decrease 12.8
Registered electors 4,156
Labour hold Swing Decrease 12.9

Source:[2][3]

Ward 15

Ward 15
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative T. Whale 615 36.4 Increase 8.4
Labour C. Brown 553 32.8 Decrease 14.8
SNP M. Blaney 520 30.8 New
Majority 62 3.6 N/A
Turnout 1,688 55.9 Increase 3.4
Registered electors 3,025
Conservative gain from Labour Swing Increase 11.6

Source:[2][3]

Ward 16

Ward 16
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour J. Anderson 763 59.5 Increase 2.1
Conservative J. Armstrong 519 40.5 Increase 22.7
Majority 244 19.0 Decrease 13.6
Turnout 1,282 51.6 Decrease 9.0
Registered electors 2,498
Labour hold Swing Decrease 10.8

Source:[2][3]

References

  1. ^ "Formation Electoral Arrangements". Local Government Boundary Commission for Scotland. Retrieved 23 December 2022.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q Botchel, J. M.; Denver, D. T. (1977). The Scottish District Elections 1977: Results and Statistics (PDF). Dundee: Election Studies, University of Dundee. Retrieved 3 January 2023.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q Botchel, J. M.; Denver, D. T. (1975). The Scottish Local Government Elections 1974: Results and Statistics (PDF). Edinburgh: Scottish Academic Press. Retrieved 3 January 2023.