1978 Strathclyde Regional Council election
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All 103 seats to Strathclyde Regional Council[a] 52 seats needed for a majority | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Registered | 1,765,635 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Turnout | 46.2% | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Elections to Strathclyde Regional Council were held on Tuesday 2 May 1978, on the same day as the eight other Scottish regional elections. This was the second election to the regional council following the local government reforms in 1974.
The election was the last to use the 103 electoral divisions created by the Formation Electoral Arrangements in 1974. Each electoral division elected one councillor using first-past-the-post voting.[2]
independent candidates
were returned.
One seat remained vacant following the election after the poll in the Crosshill and Prospecthill electoral division was postponed due to the death of Labour candidate and convener of the regional council, the Rev. Geoff Shaw on 28 April.[1]
Results
| Party | Seats | Gains | Losses | Net gain/loss | Seats % | Votes % | Votes | +/− | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | 72 |  1
|
69.9 | 43.0 | 348,053 |  1.0
| |||
Conservative
|
25 | 5
|
24.3 | 30.0 | 242,721 | 1.6
| |||
| SNP | 2 | 3
|
1.9 | 22.6 | 182,878 | 7.5
| |||
| Liberal | 2 |  0
|
1.9 | 1.8 | 14,219 | 2.7
| |||
| Independent Ratepayers | 1 | 0
|
1.0 | 0.7 | 5,754 | New | |||
| SLP | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0
|
0.0 | 0.8 | 6,410 | New | |
Independent
|
0 | 0 | 4 | 4
|
0.0 | 0.7 | 5,531 | 4.2
| |
| Communist | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0
|
0.0 | 0.3 | 2,423 | 0.9
| |
Independent Labour
|
0 | 0 | 0 | 0
|
0.0 | 0.2 | 1,573 | 0.3
| |
| Independent Nationalist | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0
|
0.0 | 0.0 | 273 | New | |
| Workers Revolutionary | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0
|
0.0 | 0.0 | 143 | New | |
| Socialist Unity | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0
|
0.0 | 0.0 | 77 | New | |
| Total | 102[a] | ||||||||
Electoral division results
Kilmarnock North
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | J. Hunter | 5,081 | 52.4 | 6.8
| |
| SNP | R. Brailsford | 2,669 | 27.5 | New | |
Conservative
|
P. Thomson | 1,946 | 20.1 | 4.6
| |
| Majority | 2,412 | 24.9 | 9.6
| ||
| Turnout | 9,696 | 48.1 | 2.2
| ||
| Registered electors | 20,179 | ||||
| Labour hold | Swing | 1.1
|
|||
Kilmarnock South
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | R. Carson | 3,571 | 39.0 | 8.2
| |
Conservative
|
A. McCluskey | 2,903 | 31.7 | 9.4
| |
| SNP | G. Wilson | 2,662 | 29.1 | New | |
| Majority | 668 | 7.3 | 1.2
| ||
| Turnout | 9,136 | 46.1 | 4.5
| ||
| Registered electors | 19,846 | ||||
| Labour hold | Swing | 0.6
|
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Stewarton and Irvine Valley
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | D. Fulton | 4,572 | 42.8 | 14.3
| |
Conservative
|
A. MacIntosh | 3,127 | 29.3 | 2.2
| |
| SNP | R. Young | 2,975 | 27.8 | New | |
| Majority | 1,445 | 13.5 | 14.5
| ||
| Turnout | 10,674 | 51.2 | 2.3
| ||
| Registered electors | 20,870 | ||||
| Labour hold | Swing | 8.2
|
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Cumnock
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | W. Paterson | 3,910 | 51.9 | N/A | |
| SLP | W. Dick | 1,877 | 24.9 | N/A | |
Conservative
|
J. Findlay | 952 | 12.6 | N/A | |
| SNP | I. Cole | 785 | 10.4 | N/A | |
| Majority | 2,033 | 27.0 | N/A | ||
| Turnout | 7,524 | 46.1 | N/A | ||
| Registered electors | 16,351 | ||||
| Labour hold | Swing | N/A | |||
New Cumnock and Doon Valley
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | W. Goudie | 3,906 | 48.3 | N/A | |
| SLP | A. Neil | 3,001 | 37.1 | N/A | |
Conservative
|
A. McInnes | 1,164 | 14.4 | N/A | |
| Majority | 905 | 11.2 | N/A | ||
| Turnout | 8,071 | 47.1 | N/A | ||
| Registered electors | 17,171 | ||||
| Labour hold | Swing | N/A | |||
Footnotes
- ^ a b Although all 103 seats were due to be contested, the election in the Crosshill and Prospecthill electoral division was postponed following the death of Labour candidate and convener of the regional council, the Rev. Geoff Shaw on 28 April 1978.[1]
References
- ^ a b "How the regions voted". The Glasgow Herald. No. 84. 4 May 1978. p. 9.
- ^ "Formation Electoral Arrangements". Local Government Boundary Commission for Scotland. Retrieved 6 December 2022.
- ^ a b c d e f Bochel, J. M.; Denver, D. T.; McHardy, B. J. (1978). The Scottish Regional Elections 1978: Results and Statistics (PDF). Dundee: Election Studies, University of Dundee. Retrieved 29 December 2022.
- ^ a b c d e f Bochel, J. M.; Denver, D. T. (1975). The Scottish Local Government Elections 1974: Results and Statistics (PDF). Edinburgh: Scottish Academic Press. Retrieved 29 December 2022.
