1999 Pendle Borough Council election

Campaign

Before the election the Liberal Democrats ran the council with 30 councillors, compared to 17 Labour, 3 Conservatives and 1 independent. 17 seats were being contested in the election, with the Liberal Democrats defending 12 and Labour 5. 4 sitting councillors stood down at the election, 2 each from the Liberal Democrat and Labour parties.

The only candidate not from the three main parties was Peter Hartley, who stood as an independent green in Vivary Bridge ward,

Election results

The results saw the Liberal Democrats lose their majority on the council after 4 years in control. The Liberal Democrats lost 4 seats to the Conservatives and a further 3 to the Labour Party, The Liberal Democrats said the other two parties had worked together to target Liberal Democrat held seats, but this was denied by the Conservative and Labour parties.

The Labour gains came in the wards of Craven, Vivary Bridge and Whitefield, while the Conservatives took the seats of Barrowford, Earby, Foulridge and Reedley. All 4 Conservatives gains were by women, meaning the Conservative group leader Roy Clarkson then had 6 female Conservative councillors in his council group. Meanwhile, the Liberal Democrats only narrowly held a further 2 seats after recounts, Edwina Sargeant holding Waterside by 9 votes and Ian Gilhespy retaining Horsfield by a single vote.

Following the election the parties were unable to agree on who should run the council. As a result, the council meeting after the election had no nominations for leader of the council. The Liberal Democrats voted down an attempt by Labour to take minority control and instead the councillors voted to rotate the chairmanship of the main committees over the next 12 months between the three parties.

|seats % = 47.1 |votes % = 40.7 |plus/minus = +2.1 |seats % = 29.4 |votes % = 38.2 |plus/minus = -3.4 |seats % = 23.5 |votes % = 21.0 |plus/minus = +1.2 |seats % = 0.0 |votes % = 0.1 |plus/minus = +0.1

Ward results

References

References

1. "Pendle". [[BBC News Online]].
2. (8 May 1999). "How Britain voted: Council Election Results". [[The Independent]].
3. (10 April 1999). "Pendle Council election candidates". [[Lancashire Telegraph]].
4. (16 April 1999). "Green Pete the Poet up the poll twice". [[Lancashire Telegraph]].
5. (7 May 1999). "Local elections: Overall Liberal control lost in Pendle on night of upsets". [[Lancashire Telegraph]].
6. (7 May 1999). "Polls only a slight tonic for the Blues". [[Lancashire Telegraph]].
7. (7 May 1999). "Elections: Girl power as Roy's angels oust liberals". [[Lancashire Telegraph]].
8. (12 May 1999). "Pre-election pact claim is denied". [[Lancashire Telegraph]].
9. (21 May 1999). "Pendle: A council without a leader". [[Lancashire Telegraph]].
10. "Election results". Pendle Borough Council.
11. (8 May 1999). "How the nations voted". [[The Times]].