1979 Manchester City Council election

1979 UK local government election

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Elections to Manchester Council were held on Thursday, 3 May 1979, on the same day as the 1979 UK general election. One third of the council was up for election, with each successful candidate to serve a three-year term of office, expiring in 1982, due to the boundary changes and "all-out" elections due to take place that year. The Labour Party retained overall control of the council.

Election result

Manchester Council Election Result 1979
	Seats	Gains	Losses	Net gain/loss	Seats %	Votes %	Votes	+/−
Labour	25	10	0	+10	75.7	50.7	118,345	+2.9%
Conservative	6	0	12	-12	18.2	37.6	87,695	-7.7%
Liberal	2	2	0	+2	6.0	11.2	26,208	+5.3%
Ecology	0	0	0	0	0.0	0.3	641	+0.3%
Communist	0	0	0	0	0.0	0.1	278	-0.1%
Independent	0	0	0	0	0.0	0.1	164	+0.1%

After the election, the composition of the council was as follows:

	Seats	+/-
Labour	63	+10
Conservative	33	-12
Liberal	3	+2
Labour hold

Ward results

Alexandra

Alexandra
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	R. C. Rodgers*	4,864	58.8	−1.1
	Labour	J. Cocker	3,403	41.2	+15.4
Majority			1,461	17.7	−16.4
Turnout			8,267	72.3	+34.7
	Conservative hold		Swing	-8.2

Ardwick

Ardwick
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	N. I. Finley*	2,289	58.5	−12.0
	Conservative	W. R. Swan	1,310	33.5	+7.2
	Liberal	J. Spittle	315	8.0	+4.8
Majority			979	25.0	−19.2
Turnout			3,914	62.3	+34.6
	Labour hold		Swing	-9.6

Baguley

Baguley
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	K. Robinson	5,412	54.5	−1.9
	Conservative	M. Malbon*	3,693	37.2	−6.4
	Liberal	P. G. Willams	821	8.3	+8.3
Majority			1,719	17.3	+4.6
Turnout			9,926	72.8	+26.7
	Labour gain from Conservative		Swing	+2.2

Barlow Moor

Barlow Moor
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	H. D. Moore*	3,095	45.9	−18.0
	Labour	J. H. Parish	2,834	42.0	+5.9
	Liberal	J. R. Marsden	815	12.1	+12.1
Majority			261	3.9	−23.9
Turnout			6,744	68.0	+35.6
	Conservative hold		Swing	-11.9

Beswick

Beswick
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	K. Eastham*	3,505	81.5	+4.2
	Conservative	C. Hare	796	18.5	+2.1
Majority			2,709	63.0	+2.1
Turnout			4,301	61.2	+33.5
	Labour hold		Swing	+1.0

Blackley

Blackley
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Eddie Newman	3,936	48.3	+3.7
	Conservative	H. P. Cummins*	3,571	43.8	−8.4
	Liberal	J. Ashley	643	7.9	+4.7
Majority			365	4.5	−3.1
Turnout			8,150	74.8	+31.6
	Labour gain from Conservative		Swing	+6.0

Bradford

Bradford
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	E. Grant*	5,127	63.9	+5.1
	Conservative	L. Hockey	2,459	30.6	−6.0
	Liberal	P. Hanmer	440	5.5	+5.5
Majority			2,668	33.2	+10.9
Turnout			8,026	69.7	+36.4
	Labour hold		Swing	+5.5

Brooklands

Brooklands
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	D. Healey	4,554	48.1	+4.9
	Conservative	D. Sumberg	4,136	43.7	−13.1
	Liberal	A. L. Algar	777	8.2	+8.2
Majority			418	4.4	−9.3
Turnout			9,467	74.9	+34.1
	Labour gain from Conservative		Swing	+9.0

Burnage

Burnage
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	H. Platt*	3,872	46.3	−14.3
	Labour	A. Lister	3,604	43.1	+3.7
	Liberal	G. Shaw	885	10.6	+10.6
Majority			268	3.2	−18.5
Turnout			8,361	74.6	+37.0
	Conservative hold		Swing	-9.0

Charlestown

Charlestown
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	G. Stringer	3,802	51.2	+2.8
	Conservative	J. Hood*	2,974	40.1	−5.1
	Liberal	E. V. Roberts	648	8.7	+5.2
Majority			828	11.2	+8.0
Turnout			7,424	76.7	+32.2
	Labour gain from Conservative		Swing	+3.9

Cheetham

Cheetham
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	S. Shaw*	3,014	66.1	−0.5
	Conservative	F. Meaden	1,294	28.4	−5.0
	Liberal	S. O. Mousah	250	5.5	+5.5
Majority			1,720	37.7	+4.5
Turnout			4,558	65.5	+37.0
	Labour hold		Swing	+2.2

Chorlton

Chorlton
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	C. Franks*	4,244	51.0	−11.0
	Labour	H. Brown	2,979	35.8	+4.7
	Liberal	J. Commons	1,096	13.2	+6.3
Majority			1,265	15.2	−15.8
Turnout			8,319	75.9	+37.5
	Conservative hold		Swing	-7.8

Collegiate Church

Collegiate Church
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Patrick Karney*	1,531	63.6	+0.5
	Conservative	S. R. Newth	666	27.7	−3.4
	Liberal	I. Wilde	211	8.8	+3.0
Majority			865	35.9	+4.0
Turnout			2,408	53.8	+25.6
	Labour hold		Swing	+1.9

Crossacres

Crossacres
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Ken Collis*	5,577	60.1	+0.6
	Conservative	A. Spencer	2,348	25.3	−4.0
	Liberal	H. Griffiths	1,358	14.6	+3.5
Majority			3,229	34.8	+4.6
Turnout			9,283	70.5	+35.2
	Labour hold		Swing	+2.3

Crumpsall

Crumpsall
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	F. W. Lever*	3,615	47.0	−6.9
	Labour	M. Harrison	3,287	42.7	+5.2
	Liberal	J. Cookson	797	10.4	+3.3
Majority			328	4.3	−12.2
Turnout			7,699	71.5	+36.2
	Conservative hold		Swing	-6.0

Didsbury

Didsbury
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	M. R. Crawford*	5,415	56.4	−11.6
	Labour	R. P. Ashby	2,444	25.5	+2.8
	Liberal	A. T. Parkinson	1,738	18.1	+8.8
Majority			2,971	31.0	−14.3
Turnout			9,597	76.8	+32.3
	Conservative hold		Swing	-7.2

Gorton North

Gorton North
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	P. Hildrew	3,871	63.2	+6.5
	Conservative	E. Leadbetter	1,845	30.1	−6.1
	Liberal	D. Nicholson	411	6.7	−0.4
Majority			2,026	33.1	+12.6
Turnout			6,127	73.2	+35.5
	Labour hold		Swing	+6.3

Gorton South

Gorton South
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	K. Franklin*	3,662	61.1	+5.7
	Conservative	D. Heywood	1,905	31.8	−8.4
	Liberal	J. Rhodes	429	7.2	+7.2
Majority			1,757	29.3	+14.1
Turnout			5,996	70.9	+37.1
	Labour hold		Swing	+7.0

Harpurhey

Harpurhey
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	R. F. Delahunty*	2,802	64.6	+2.1
	Conservative	J. Harding	1,270	29.3	−8.2
	Liberal	N. Towers	266	6.1	+6.1
Majority			1,532	35.3	+10.3
Turnout			4,338	65.4	+34.5
	Labour hold		Swing	+5.1

Hulme

Hulme
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	W. Smith*	3,562	68.6	+11.1
	Conservative	N. P. Shand	957	18.4	+3.5
	Liberal	S. K. McClure	499	10.6	−3.7
	Communist	R. W. Gwilt	174	3.4	+1.3
Majority			2,605	50.2	+12.8
Turnout			5,192	61.6	+32.2
	Labour hold		Swing	+3.8

Levenshulme

Levenshulme
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Keith Whitmore	3,180	36.6	+14.5
	Labour	R. A. Reddington	2,959	34.1	−3.1
	Conservative	S. Alexander*	2,544	29.3	−11.4
Majority			221	2.5	−1.0
Turnout			8,683	72.2	+33.8
	Liberal gain from Conservative		Swing	+8.8

Lightbowne

Lightbowne
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	P. A. Murphy	4,358	55.2	−0.3
	Conservative	V. E. Clare	2,787	35.3	−9.2
	Liberal	K. Osbourne	743	9.4	+9.4
Majority			1,571	19.9	+8.9
Turnout			7,888	74.8	+31.8
	Labour gain from Conservative		Swing	+4.4

Lloyd Street

Lloyd Street
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	A. S. Wood*	4,449	56.0	+2.8
	Conservative	M. L. Davies	2,788	35.1	−6.9
	Liberal	M. A. Plesch	540	6.8	+2.0
	Independent	A. H. Bradley	164	2.1	+2.1
Majority			1,661	20.9	+9.7
Turnout			7,941	69.3	+33.5
	Labour hold		Swing	+4.8

Longsight

Longsight
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	J. M. Wilson	3,837	60.3	+6.2
	Conservative	G. Taylor*	1,989	31.3	−9.6
	Liberal	M. Amin	534	8.4	+3.4
Majority			1,848	29.1	+9.7
Turnout			6,360	66.8	+32.4
	Labour gain from Conservative		Swing	+7.9

Miles Platting

Miles Platting
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	P. Conquest	3,193	76.8	+0.5
	Conservative	J. Cartland	737	17.7	−0.4
	Liberal	J. A. Turrell	228	5.5	+5.5
Majority			2,456	59.1	+0.9
Turnout			4,158	62.0	+38.0
	Labour hold		Swing	+0.4

Moss Side

Moss Side
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	J. Wilner	2,630	67.5	−2.5
	Conservative	J. M. Goldsby	888	22.8	+4.1
	Liberal	D. Redford	380	9.7	−1.6
Majority			1,742	44.7	−6.5
Turnout			3,898	63.5	+36.3
	Labour hold		Swing	-3.3

Moston

Moston
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	C. McClaren	4,179	46.3	+1.5
	Conservative	G. I. Jones*	3,958	43.9	−11.3
	Liberal	M. Gradwell	881	9.8	+9.8
Majority			221	2.5	−7.9
Turnout			9,018	77.2	+32.7
	Labour gain from Conservative		Swing	+6.4

Newton Heath

Newton Heath
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	J. Smith*	4,209	60.4	+3.4
	Conservative	D. Booth	2,499	35.9	−7.1
	Liberal	V. Towers	258	3.7	+3.7
Majority			1,710	24.5	+10.6
Turnout			6,966	70.4	+31.2
	Labour hold		Swing	+5.2

Northenden

Northenden
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	W. J. Courtney	4,106	45.6	+1.8
	Conservative	D. Mountford*	3,895	43.3	−3.0
	Liberal	P. J. Hughes	893	9.9	+0.0
	Communist	J. Gandy	104	1.2	+1.2
Majority			211	2.3	−0.3
Turnout			8,998	75.1	+28.2
	Labour gain from Conservative		Swing	+2.4

Old Moat

Old Moat
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	A. Home	2,850	41.4	+1.9
	Conservative	T. E. Murphy*	2,735	39.7	−19.0
	Liberal	G. J. Corps	1,299	18.9	+18.9
Majority			115	1.7	−17.5
Turnout			6,884	72.5	+33.8
	Labour gain from Conservative		Swing	+10.4

Rusholme

Rusholme
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	A. Bateman	3,804	42.3	+4.2
	Conservative	S. Tucker*	3,685	40.9	−14.1
	Liberal	D. Senior	870	9.7	+2.8
	Ecology	S. L. Howarth	641	7.1	+7.1
Majority			119	1.3	−15.6
Turnout			9,000	65.8	+36.0
	Labour gain from Conservative		Swing	+9.1

Withington

Withington
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	D. Sandiford	3,116	38.9	+6.7
	Conservative	J. M. Jacobs	2,889	36.0	−6.6
	Labour	J. Finnegan	2,009	25.1	−0.1
Majority			227	2.8	−7.5
Turnout			8,014	73.3	+34.5
	Liberal gain from Conservative		Swing	+6.6

Woodhouse Park

Woodhouse Park
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	G. Berry*	4,567	61.5	−6.0
	Conservative	J. C. Ridgard	1,972	26.6	−2.9
	Liberal	L. Griffiths	887	11.9	+11.9
Majority			2,595	34.9	−3.1
Turnout			7,426	71.6	+34.3
	Labour hold		Swing	-1.5

References

Manchester City Council Election Results, 2nd Edition, Swarbrick (1993).

v t e (1978 ←) 1979 United Kingdom local elections (→ 1980)
Metropolitan boroughs	Barnsley Birmingham Bradford Bolton Bury Calderdale Coventry Doncaster Dudley Gateshead Kirklees Knowsley Leeds Liverpool Manchester Newcastle North Tyneside Oldham Rochdale Rotherham Salford Sandwell Sefton Sheffield Solihull South Tyneside St Helens Stockport Sunderland Tameside Trafford Wakefield Walsall Wigan Wirral Wolverhampton
District councils (England)	Adur Allerdale Alnwick Amber Valley Arun Ashfield Ashford Aylesbury Vale Babergh Barrow-in-Furness Basildon Basingstoke and Deane Bassetlaw Bath Beaconsfield Berwick-upon-Tweed Beverley Blaby Blackburn Blackpool Blyth Valley Bolsover Boothferry Boston Bournemouth Bracknell Braintree Breckland Brentwood Bridgnorth Brighton Bristol Broadland Bromsgrove Broxbourne Broxtowe Burnley Cambridge Cannock Chase Canterbury Caradon Carlisle Carrick Castle Morpeth Castle Point Charnwood Chelmsford Cheltenham Cherwell Chester Chesterfield Chester-le-Street Chichester Chiltern Chorley Christchurch Cleethorpes Colchester Congleton Copeland Corby Cotswold Craven Crawley Crewe and Nantwich Dacorum Darlington Dartford Daventry Derby Derwentside Dover Durham Easington East Cambridgeshire East Devon East Hampshire East Hertfordshire East Lindsey East Northamptonshire East Staffordshire Eastbourne Eastleigh Eden Ellesmere Port and Neston Elmbridge Epping Forest Epsom and Ewell Erewash Exeter Fareham Fenland Forest Heath Forest of Dean Fylde Gedling Gillingham Glanford Gloucester Gosport Gravesham Great Yarmouth Grimsby Guildford Halton Hambleton Harborough Harlow Harrogate Hart Hartlepool Hastings Havant Hereford Hertsmere High Peak Hinckley and Bosworth Holderness Horsham Hove Huntingdon Hyndburn Ipswich Kennet Kerrier Kettering Kingston upon Hull Kingswood Lancaster Langbaurgh Leicester Leominster Lewes Lichfield Lincoln Luton Macclesfield Maidstone Maldon Malvern Hills Mansfield Medina Medway Melton Mendip Mid Bedfordshire Mid Devon Mid Suffolk Mid Sussex Middlesbrough Milton Keynes Mole Valley New Forest Newark Newbury Newcastle-under-Lyme North Bedfordshire North Cornwall North Devon North Dorset North East Derbyshire North Hertfordshire North Kesteven North Norfolk North Shropshire North Warwickshire North West Leicestershire North Wiltshire North Wolds Northampton Northavon Norwich Nottingham Nuneaton Oadby and Wigston Oswestry Oxford Pendle Penwith Peterborough Plymouth Poole Portsmouth Preston Purbeck Reading Redditch Reigate and Banstead Restormel Ribble Valley Richmondshire Rochford Rossendale Rother Rugby Runnymede Rushcliffe Rushmoor Rutland Ryedale Salisbury Scarborough Scunthorpe Sedgefield Sedgemoor Selby Sevenoaks Shepway Shrewsbury and Atcham Slough South Bedfordshire South Cambridgeshire South Derbyshire South Hams South Herefordshire South Holland South Kesteven South Lakeland South Norfolk South Northamptonshire South Oxfordshire South Ribble South Shropshire South Staffordshire South Wight Southampton Southend-on-Sea Spelthorne St Albans St Edmundsbury Stafford Staffordshire Moorlands Stevenage Stockton-on-Tees Stoke-on-Trent Stratford-on-Avon Stroud Suffolk Coastal Surrey Heath Swale Tamworth Tandridge Taunton Deane Teesdale Teignbridge Tendring Test Valley Tewkesbury Thamesdown Thanet The Wrekin Three Rivers Thurrock Tonbridge and Malling Torbay Torridge Tunbridge Wells Tynedale Uttlesford Vale of White Horse Vale Royal Wansbeck Wansdyke Warrington Warwick Watford Waveney Waverley Wealden Wear Valley Wellingborough Welwyn Hatfield West Derbyshire West Devon West Dorset West Lancashire West Lindsey West Norfolk West Oxfordshire West Somerset West Wiltshire Weymouth and Portland Wimborne Winchester Windsor and Maidenhead Woking Wokingham Woodspring Worcester Worthing Wychavon Wycombe Wyre Wyre Forest Yeovil York
District councils (Wales)	Aberconwy Afan Alyn and Deeside Anglesey - Ynys Môn Arfon Blaenau Gwent Brecknock Cardiff Carmarthen Ceredigion Colwyn Cynon Valley Delyn Dinefwr Dwyfor Glyndŵr Islwyn Llanelli Lliw Valley Meirionnydd Merthyr Tydfil Monmouth Montgomery Neath Newport Ogwr Preseli Radnor Rhondda Rhuddlan Rhymney Valley South Pembrokeshire Swansea Taff-Ely Torfaen Vale of Glamorgan Wrexham Maelor
Referendums	Scottish devolution Welsh devolution
See also: UK General election European Parliament election

v t e Council elections in Greater Manchester
Mayor	2017 2021 2024 2028
Bolton	1973 1975 1976 1978 1979 1980 1982 1983 1984 1986 1987 1988 1990 1991 1992 1994 1995 1996 1998 1999 2000 2002 2003 2004 2006 2007 2008 2010 2011 2012 2014 2015 2016 2018 2019 2021 2022 2023 2024 2026
Bury	1973 1975 1976 1978 1979 1980 1982 1983 1984 1986 1987 1988 1990 1991 1992 1994 1995 1996 1998 1999 2000 2002 2003 2004 2006 2007 2008 2010 2011 2012 2014 2015 2016 2018 2019 2021 2022 2023 2024 2026
Manchester	1838 1839 1840 1841 1842 1843 1844 1845 1846 1847 1848 1849 1850 1851 1852 1853 1854 1855 1856 1857 1858 1859 1860 1861 1862 1863 1864 1865 1866 1867 1868 1869 1870 1871 1872 1873 1874 1875 1876 1877 1878 1879 1880 1881 1882 1883 1884 1885 1886 1887 1888 1889 1890 1891 1892 1893 1894 1895 1896 1897 1898 1899 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1945 1946 1947 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1975 1976 1978 1979 1980 1982 1983 1984 1986 1987 1988 1990 1991 1992 1994 1995 1996 1998 1999 2000 2002 2003 2004 2006 2007 2008 2010 2011 2012 2014 2015 2016 2018 2019 2021 2022 2023 2024 2026
Oldham	1973 1975 1976 1978 1979 1980 1982 1983 1984 1986 1987 1988 1990 1991 1992 1994 1995 1996 1998 1999 2000 2002 2003 2004 2006 2007 2008 2010 2011 2012 2014 2015 2016 2018 2019 2021 2022 2023 2024 2026
Rochdale	1973 1975 1976 1978 1979 1980 1982 1983 1984 1986 1987 1988 1990 1991 1992 1994 1995 1996 1998 1999 2000 2002 2003 2004 2006 2007 2008 2010 2011 2012 2014 2015 2016 2018 2019 2021 2022 2023 2024 2026
Salford	1973 1975 1976 1978 1979 1980 1982 1983 1984 1986 1987 1988 1990 1991 1992 1994 1995 1996 1998 1999 2000 2002 2003 2004 2006 2007 2008 2010 2011 2012 2014 2015 2016 2018 2019 2021 2022 2023 2024 2026
Stockport	1973 1975 1976 1978 1979 1980 1982 1983 1984 1986 1987 1988 1990 1991 1992 1994 1995 1996 1998 1999 2000 2002 2003 2004 2006 2007 2008 2010 2011 2012 2014 2015 2016 2018 2019 2021 2022 2023 2024 2026
Tameside	1973 1975 1976 1978 1979 1980 1982 1983 1984 1986 1987 1988 1990 1991 1992 1994 1995 1996 1998 1999 2000 2002 2003 2004 2006 2007 2008 2010 2011 2012 2014 2015 2016 2018 2019 2021 2022 2023 2024 2026
Trafford	1973 1975 1976 1978 1979 1980 1982 1983 1984 1986 1987 1988 1990 1991 1992 1994 1995 1996 1998 1999 2000 2002 2003 2004 2006 2007 2008 2010 2011 2012 2014 2015 2016 2018 2019 2021 2022 2023 2024 2026
Wigan	1973 1975 1976 1978 1979 1980 1982 1983 1984 1986 1987 1988 1990 1991 1992 1994 1995 1996 1998 1999 2000 2002 2003 2004 2006 2007 2008 2010 2011 2012 2014 2015 2016 2018 2019 2021 2022 2023 2024 2026
County Council	1973 1977 1981
See also: Wards Boundary changes

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