County Council Election Results
The Conservatives have taken control of the County Council, shifting the balance of power from 43/18 Labour/Conservative to 37/24 Conservative. The Liberal Democrats maintained 3 seats (although two are different seats) and no Greens or independents were elected in the county.
The Conservatives now have a majority of 10 whereas Labour previously had a majority of 22.
Belper’s Divisions voted as follows:
Alport and Derwent
Conservative Hold
David Taylor (Con) 2550
Jyoti Wilkinson (Lab) 1249
Paul Smith (Lib Dem) 329
William MacFarlane (Green) 280
Belper
Conservative Win
Peter Makin (Con) 1714
John Owen (Lab) 1590
Dave Wells (Green) 226
Richard Salmon (Lib Dem) 175
Duffield and Belper South
Conservative Hold
Chris Short (Con) 1770
Carol Angharad (Lab) 889
Sue Macfarlane (Green) 439
Stuart Bradford (Ind) 358
Jeremy Benson (Lib Dem) 250
The full tally is:
Conservative Hold:
Alport and Derwent, Ashbourne, Bakewell, Breadsall and West Hallam, Breaston, Buxton West, Chapel and Hope Valley, Derwent Valley, Dovedale, Duffield and Belper South, Etwall and Repton, Glossop and Charlesworth, Hilton, Horsley, Loundsley Green and Newbold, Melbourne, Sandiacre, Sawley, Wingerworth and Shirland. (19)
Labour Hold:
Alfreton and Somercotes, Barlborough and Clowne, Birdholme, Bolsover North, Bolsover South, Baythorpe and Brampton, Brimington (Chesterfield), Clay Cross North, Clay Cross South, Eckington and Killamarsh, Etherow, Ilkeston South, Shirebrook and Pleasley, South Normanton and Pinxton, Spire, St. Mary’s, Staveley, Sutton, Swadlingcote North, Tibshelf, Wirksworth. (21)
Liberal Democrat Hold:
New Mills (1)
Conservative Gain from Labour:
Aston, Belper, Buxton North and East, Dronfield East, Greater Heanor, Heanor Central, Ilkeston East, Ilkeston West, Linton, Long Eaton, Petersham, Ripley East and Codnor, Ripley West and Heage, Swadlingcote Central, Swadlingcote South. (15)
Conservative Gain from Liberal Democrats:
Whalley Bridge, Walton and West (2)
Liberal Democrat Gain from Labour:
Matlock, Staveley North and Whittington (2)
This County Election result means we in Belper now have 24 Tory councillors out of a total of 27, Tory control of the town, borough and county councils and a Tory MP, happy to support and carry out the slash, trash and plunder policies of this viciously destructive Tory government as it blunders it’s way towards exit from the EU. The sitting Tory County Councillor for Belper South and Duffield, Stuart Bradford, was deselected by his party and stood as an independent. At a hustings in Duffield before the election Mr Bradford admitted that council services like Social Care were in deep trouble due to government cuts. No doubt this honesty was a good part of the reason he was deselected.
Was the turnout lower than previous years? There was very little in the way of reminders to vote in the media (apart from Nailed of course) and everyone has been preoccupied with the surprise announcement of the forthcoming General Election. Could be the reason.