Dunfermline East (Scottish Parliament constituency)

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Dunfermline East
Former burgh
Council area
Fife

Dunfermline East was a

plurality (first past the post)
method of election.

From the 2011 Scottish Parliament election, parts of the Dunfermline East constituency were merged with the old Dunfermline West seat to form a single Dunfermline constituency, while a new constituency of Cowdenbeath was created from the remaining area.

Electoral region

The region covers all of the Clackmannanshire council area, all of the Fife council area, all of the Perth and Kinross council area, all of the Stirling council area and parts of the Angus council area.

Constituency boundaries and council area

The constituency was created at the same time as the Scottish Parliament, in

House of Commons) constituency. In 2005, however, Scottish Westminster constituencies were mostly replaced with new constituencies.[1] The Dunfermline East Westminster constituency was divided between Dunfermline and West Fife and Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath
.

The Holyrood constituency of Dunfermline East was one of five Mid Scotland and Fife constituencies covering the

. All were entirely within the council area.

Dunfermline East covered a south-western portion of the council area, with Dunfermline West to the west, Fife Central to the northeast and Kirkcaldy to the east.

Constituency profile

The constituency contains no part of the town of

unitary council areas
.)

Cowdenbeath is the largest town in the constituency, and most of the constituency area was once part of the Fife coalfield, on the north bank of the Firth of Forth. The region has economic troubles, and the closure of the Rosyth naval base and the troubles at the naval dockyard have not helped.

Statistically, this was one of

Member of Parliament (MP) for the area since 1950. Gordon Brown, the former prime minister
, was MP for the Dunfermline East Westminster constituency from 1983 to 2005. He was subsequently MP for the Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath constituency, where his majority at the 2010 general election was over 15,000.

Member of the Scottish Parliament

Election Member Party
1999 Helen Eadie
Labour
2011 Constituency abolished; see Cowdenbeath and Dunfermline

Election results

2007 Scottish Parliament election: Dunfermline East
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour
Helen Eadie 10,995 44.8 -5.1
SNP Ewan Dow 7,002 28.5 +10.1
Conservative
Graeme Brown 3,718 15.1 +4.4
Liberal Democrats Karen Utting 2,853 11.6 +5.4
Majority 3,993 16.3 -15.2
Turnout 24,568 48.1 +2.9
Labour
hold
Swing -7.6
2003 Scottish Parliament election: Dunfermline East
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour
Helen Eadie 11,552 49.9 -6.0
SNP Janet Law 4,262 18.4 -8.2
Conservative
Stuart Randall 2,485 10.7 +0.8
Independent Campaign for Local Hospital Services Brian Walker Stewart 1,890 8.2 New
Scottish Socialist Linda Graham 1,537 6.6 New
Liberal Democrats Rodger Spillane 1,428 6.2 -1.5
Majority 7,290 31.5 +2.2
Turnout 23,154 45.2
Labour
hold
Swing +15.8
1999 Scottish Parliament election: Dunfermline East
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour
Helen Eadie 16,574 55.89 N/A
SNP David McCarthy 7,877 26.56 N/A
Conservative
Carrie Ruxton 2,931 9.88 N/A
Liberal Democrats Fred Lawson 2,276 7.67 N/A
Majority 8,697 29.33 N/A
Turnout 29,658 N/A
Labour
win (new seat)

Footnotes