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2022 Dumfries and Galloway Council election

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All 43 seats to Dumfries and Galloway Council 22 seats needed for a majority
First party Second party Third party   Leader Ian Carruthers Rob Davidson Elaine Murray Party Conservative SNP Labour Leader's seat Annandale South Abbey (stood down) Nith (stood down) Last election 16 seats, 37.2% 11 seats, 20.7% 11 seats, 17.7% Seats won 16 11 9 Seat change 2 Popular vote 21,462 15,602 9,169 Percentage 38.8% 28.2% 16.6% Swing 1.6% 7.5% 1.1%   Fourth party Fifth party   Ind Leader Richard Brodie Party Independent Liberal Democrats Leader's seat Annandale South Last election 4 seats, 20.0% 1 seat, 2.4% Seats won 6 1 Seat change 2 Popular vote 4,762 1,810 Percentage 8.6% 3.3% Swing 11.4% 0.9%
A map of Dumfries & Galloway showing the political parties with the most 1st preference votes in each ward.
A pie chart showing the share of 1st preference votes in Dumfries & Galloway.
Leader before election Elaine Murray (Labour) No overall control Co-leaders after election Stephen Thompson (SNP) and Linda Dorward (Labour) No overall control

Elections to Dumfries and Galloway Council took place on 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 with 16 seats but remained shy of an overall majority. The Scottish National Party (SNP) increased their vote share by 7.5% but failed to make any gains and were again returned as the second-largest party with 11 seats. Labour lost two seats to return nine councillors while the Liberal Democrats retained their only seat. Six independent candidates were also elected – an increase of two.

The Labour–SNP coalition administration retained control of the council with support from two independents and Lib Dem councillor Richard Brodie. Cllrs Stephen Thompson and Linda Dorward were elected co-leaders of the council. However, the partnership collapsed less than a year after the election as the Conservatives took minority control of the council.

Background

Previous election

At the previous election in 2017, the Conservatives gained two seats to hold 16 and replaced Labour as the largest party on the council. Labour lost four seats and the Scottish National Party (SNP) gained one as both returned 11 councillors. The two parties would form a coalition to run the council. The Liberal Democrats retained their only seat while the number of independents fell from seven to four.

Source:

Electoral system

The election used the nine wards created under the Local Governance (Scotland) Act 2004, with 32 councillors being elected. Each ward elected either 3 or 4 members, using the single transferable vote (STV) electoral system – a form of proportional representation – where candidates are ranked in order of preference.

Composition

Between the 2017 and 2022 elections, there were a few changes to the composition of the council. All of these were due to changes in the political affiliations of councillors. Former council leader and Labour councillor Ronnie Nicolson and Conservative councillor David James resigned from their respective parties to sit as independents. Labour councillor Tommy Sloan resigned from the party and sat as an independent councillor and member of the Dumfries and Galloway Socialists Group while SNP councillor Dougie Campbell left the party and stood as an independent at the 2022 election. SNP councillor Andrew Wood initially resigned from the party to sit as an independent. He later joined the Conservatives. There were two by-elections and both resulted in Conservative holds.

Retiring councillors

Many prominent elected members stood down at this election, including the leader of the council, and former Dumfriesshire MSP, Elaine Murray.

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Results

2022 Dumfries and Galloway Council election result

Party		Seats	Gains	Losses	Net gain/loss	Seats %	Votes %	Votes	+/−
	Conservative	16	0	0		37.2	38.8	21,462	1.6
	SNP	11	0	0		25.6	28.2	15,602	7.5
	Labour	9	0	2	2	20.9	16.6	9,169	1.1
	Independent	6	2	0	2	13.9	8.6	4,762	11.4
	Liberal Democrats	1	0	0		2.3	3.3	1,810	0.9
	Scottish Green	0	0	0		0.0	4.5	2,496	2.7
	Alba	0	0	0		0.0	0.1	68	New
Total		43						55,369

Source:

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.

Ward results

Stranraer and the Rhins

Mid Galloway and Wigtown West

Dee and Glenkens

Castle Douglas and Crocketford

Abbey

North West Dumfries

Mid and Upper Nithsdale

Lochar

Nith

Annandale South

Annandale North

Annandale East and Eskdale

Aftermath

Over the 2017–2022 term, the SNP and Labour ran a coalition, while the Conservatives were the largest party. Following this election, the SNP under Cllr Stephen Thompson, Labour under Cllr Linda Dorward and the Independent Group (including 6 Independents and 1 Liberal Democrat) under Cllr Richard Brodie agreed to work together and form a "Rainbow Coalition". Thompson and Dorward became co-leaders of the council.

Despite the collaboration between the SNP and Labour, Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar claimed that the deal was an interim arrangement and "not for the duration of the entire council term". Ultimately, the coalition agreement lasted only 8 months and the Conservatives (with Independent support) took control of the administration.

Mid Galloway and Wigtown West by-election

In October 2022, Labour councillor Sandy Whitelaw resigned, triggering a by-election in Ward 2 - Mid Galloway and Wigtown West, which was held on 8 December 2022.

Change in Council Leadership

In February 2023, Labour councillors agreed to terminate their formal coalition with the SNP and Independent Councillors. The resulting agreement led to Councillor Stephen Thompson (SNP) being declared Leader of Dumfries & Galloway Council and Councillor Richard Brodie (Lib Dem) declared as Deputy Leader.

In March 2023, Labour abstentions and Independent Councillors' support allowed a Conservative budget to pass. As a result, the SNP leadership resigned, including Councillor Thompson. One week later, the Conservatives (with independent group support) elected Gail MacGregor as Council Leader, resulting in Dumfries and Galloway Council coming under Conservative administration.

References

1. ^ "Dumfries and Galloway Council". BBC. 5 May 2017. Archived from the original on 10 May 2017. Retrieved 29 May 2024.
2. ^ Teale, Andrew. "Local Elections Archive Project - 2017 - Dumfries and Galloway". Retrieved 29 May 2024.
3. "Notice of Election" (PDF). East Ayrshire Council. Retrieved 31 March 2022.
4. "Former Council leader quits over teacher cuts". BBC News. 26 February 2019. Retrieved 31 May 2024.
5. Gillespie, Stewart (12 April 2019). "Castle Douglas and Crocketford councillor David James resigns from Conservative group". Daily Record. Retrieved 31 May 2024.
6. ^ Faulds, Allan. "Words Worth Watching: Dumfries and Galloway". Ballot Box Scotland. Retrieved 31 May 2024.
7. McCall, Chris (21 September 2020). "Former SNP stalwart switches to Conservatives over concerns about Scottish independence plan". Daily Record. Retrieved 31 May 2024.
8. "Conservatives win Dumfries and Galloway council by-election". BBC News. 14 December 2018. Retrieved 31 May 2024.
9. "Councillor Jackie McCamon Wins Coveted National Award". Dumfries and Galloway News. 25 November 2021. Retrieved 31 May 2024.
10. "Dumfries and Galloway Council's first ever female leader to step down". BBC News. 24 February 2022. Retrieved 31 May 2024.
11. Faulds, Allan. "Dumfries and Galloway Council 2022". Ballot Box Scotland. Retrieved 31 May 2024.
12. "Dumfries & Galloway result - Scottish Council Elections 2022". BBC News. Retrieved 29 May 2024.
13. Faulds, Allan. "The Local STV Voting System Explained". Ballot Box Scotland. Retrieved 24 October 2022.
14. "Single Transferable Vote". Electoral Reform Society. Retrieved 24 October 2022.
15. "Cross-party panel agreed to help run Dumfries and Galloway Council". BBC News. 27 June 2022. Retrieved 8 February 2023.
16. Brawn, Steph (17 July 2022). "Dumfries and Galloway: 'Interim' council deal shows Labour fear SNP, says MSP". The National. Retrieved 18 July 2022.
17. "Dumfries and Galloway Council's rainbow coalition reshuffle agreed". BBC News. 3 February 2023. Retrieved 8 February 2023.
18. Gillespie, Stuart (12 October 2022). "Councillor quits less than six months after election". Daily Record.
19. "Declaration Mid Galloway Wigtown West By Election December 2022" (PDF). Dumfries and Galloway Council.
20. McLean, Marc (7 February 2023). "Council coalition hangs on to power". Daily Record. Retrieved 8 February 2023.
21. Rinaldi, Giancarlo (28 February 2023). "The rise and fall of Dumfries and Galloway's cross-party coalition". BBC News. Retrieved 7 March 2023.
22. Elliards, Xander (7 March 2023). "Tories take control of Scottish council as Labour blamed for playing 'games'". The National.

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