1985 Derry City Council election

Last updated July 24, 2023

Elections to Derry City Council were held on 15 May 1985 on the same day as the other Northern Irish local government elections. The election used five district electoral areas to elect a total of 30 councillors.

Election results

Derry City Council Election Result 1985^[1]
	Seats	Gains	Losses	Net gain/loss	Seats %	Votes %	Votes	+/−
SDLP	14	0	0	0	46.7	41.9	15,264	0.6
DUP	5	0	0	0	16.7	17.3	6,317	1.3
Sinn Féin	5	5	0	5	16.7	17.1	6,218	New
Ulster Unionist	5	1	0	1	16.7	13.1	4,778	2.5
Irish Independence	1	0	3	3	3.3	7.2	2,630	6.5
Alliance	0	0	0	0	0.0	2.7	971	3.7
Workers' Party	0	0	0	0	0.0	0.7	253	0.3

Note: "Votes" are the first preference votes.

Districts summary

^[1]

Results of the Derry City Council election, 1985
by district
Ward	%	Cllrs	%	Cllrs	%	Cllrs	%	Cllrs	%	Cllrs	%	Cllrs	Total Cllrs
Ward	SDLP		DUP		Sinn Féin		UUP		IIP		Others		Total Cllrs
Cityside	46.5	3	0.0	0	39.6	3	0.0	0	10.0	0	3.9	0	6
Northland	53.7	3	5.4	0	15.5	1	11.3	1	10.9	1	3.2	0	6
Rural	38.2	3	29.3	2	6.4	0	22.9	2	3.2	0	0.0	0	7
Shantallow	58.8	4	0.0	0	25.3	1	0.0	0	10.6	0	5.3	0	5
Waterside	18.5	1	42.4	3	6.2	0	24.2	2	3.3	0	5.4	0	6
Total	41.9	14	17.3	5	17.1	5	13.1	5	7.2	1	3.4	0	30

District results

Cityside

1985: 3 x SDLP, 3 x Sinn Féin

Cityside - 6 seats^[2]
Party		Candidate	FPv%	Count
Party		Candidate	FPv%	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10
	SDLP	Patrick Devine*	12.94%	836	844	850	851	1,077
	Sinn Féin	Anne McGuinness	13.47%	870	883	891	909	918	918	981
	Sinn Féin	Hugh Brady	13.12%	848	857	875	890	893	893.73	967.73
	Sinn Féin	Mitchel McLaughlin	12.97%	838	850	854	900	908	908	960
	SDLP	Tony Carlin	10.85%	701	701	708	721	792	835.8	890.26	894.26	914.26	920.26
	SDLP	Pat Ramsey	7.89%	510	513	515	551	643	671.47	698.66	704.66	712.66	716.66
	SDLP	Jim Clifford	7.72%	499	501	513	548	592	662.08	693.08	697.08	702.08	703.08
	Irish Independence	Liam Bradley*	5.71%	369	414	498	539	564	572.03
	SDLP	William Keys*	7.10%	459	463	467	492
	Workers' Party	Eamonn Melaugh	3.92%	253	256	277
	Irish Independence	Samuel Brown	2.23%	144	170
	Irish Independence	John McChrystal*	2.07%	134
Electorate: 10,598 Valid: 6,461 (60.96%) Spoilt: 213 Quota: 924 Turnout: 6,674 (62.97%)

Northland

1985: 3 x SDLP, 1 x Sinn Féin, 1 x UUP, 1 x IIP

Northland - 6 seats^[2]
Party		Candidate	FPv%	Count
Party		Candidate	FPv%	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10
	SDLP	John Tierney *	18.32%	1,417
	Sinn Féin	Bernard McFadden	13.78%	1,066	1,074.14	1,079.14	1,190.14
	Ulster Unionist	David Davis*	11.30%	874	874	874	875	928	1,329
	SDLP	Leonard Green*	10.34%	800	885.36	893.24	900.56	940	942	952	957	1,220
	SDLP	Anna Gallagher*	9.13%	706	752.42	760.86	772.3	819.96	820.96	831.96	834.96	1,024.16	1,100.16
	Irish Independence	Fergus McAteer *	8.81%	681	699.92	731.8	811.12	821.12	822.12	827.12	875.12	947.66	949.16
	SDLP	William McCorriston*	7.69%	595	681.68	686.68	691.22	716.88	716.88	723.88	727.88	886.56	922.56
	SDLP	John Kerr	8.26%	639	682.12	684.78	688.22	714.1	714.1	723.1	723.1
	DUP	John Noble	5.39%	417	417	417	419	425
	Alliance	Mary Breen	3.15%	244	247.52	248.52	251.52
	Sinn Féin	James McKnight	1.69%	131	135.62	135.62
	Irish Independence	Annie Burke	1.27%	98	100.64	106.64
	Irish Independence	John McCool	0.85%	66	69.08
Electorate: 12,243 Valid: 7,734 (63.17%) Spoilt: 191 Quota: 1,105 Turnout: 7,925 (64.73%)

Rural

1985: 3 x SDLP, 2 x DUP, 2 x UUP

Rural - 7 seats^[2]
Party		Candidate	FPv%	Count
Party		Candidate	FPv%	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8
	SDLP	John McNickle*	11.54%	1,004	1,016	1,040	1,042	1,146
	DUP	William Hay *	11.58%	1,008	1,008	1,008	1,048	1,048	1,048	1,390
	DUP	Ellis Allen	9.32%	811	811	811	841	841	841	1,126
	Ulster Unionist	John Adams	8.89%	774	774	775	1,045	1,048	1,048	1,076	1,174
	Ulster Unionist	Ernest Hamilton	7.88%	686	686	686	853	853	853	928	1,088
	SDLP	Annie Courtney	11.09%	965	969	1,028	1,029	1,071	1,078.36	1,078.36	1,080.36
	SDLP	Hugh O'Neill	8.02%	698	702	801	802	875	910.88	915.88	915.88
	SDLP	George Peoples*	7.61%	662	667	685	688	744	758.72	759.72	759.72
	DUP	Mervyn Lindsay	8.39%	730	731	731	742	742	742
	Sinn Féin	Edward McGowan	3.49%	304	516	565	565
	Ulster Unionist	Robert Bond*	6.09%	530	530	532
	Irish Independence	Michael Breslin	3.17%	276	285
	Sinn Féin	Patrick McNaught	2.92%	254
Electorate: 12,752 Valid: 8,702 (68.24%) Spoilt: 185 Quota: 1,088 Turnout: 8,887 (69.69%)

Shantallow

1985: 4 x SDLP, 1 x Sinn Féin

Shantallow - 5 seats^[2]
Party		Candidate	FPv%	Count
Party		Candidate	FPv%	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8
	SDLP	William O'Connell*	19.83%	1,117
	SDLP	Mary Bradley	19.42%	1,094
	SDLP	Noel McKenna	11.63%	655	743.96	772.1	776.4	783.62	883.14	890.28	951.36
	Sinn Féin	Gerard Doherty	8.87%	500	501.28	504.78	511.38	517.7	520.7	754.14	796.6
	SDLP	Teresa Coyle	7.90%	445	513.48	615.4	629.12	641.66	704.52	707.94	761.88
	Sinn Féin	William McCartney	8.68%	489	490.44	491.7	505	518.14	519.3	686.78	734.22
	Irish Independence	Robert Hegarty	4.31%	243	246.04	248.14	290.44	474.3	482.76	498.9
	Sinn Féin	Susan O'Hagan	7.72%	435	436.12	437.24	439.56	450.86	453.02
	Alliance	Gerard O'Grady	5.29%	298	302.32	304.56	308.88	316.34
	Irish Independence	James Nicholl	3.27%	184	187.52	191.02	270.44
	Irish Independence	Thomas Mullan	3.08%	174	176.72	179.94
Electorate: 9,401 Valid: 5,634 (59.93%) Spoilt: 204 Quota: 940 Turnout: 5,838 (62.10%)

Waterside

1985: 3 x DUP, 2 x UUP, 1 x SDLP

Waterside - 6 seats^[2]
Party		Candidate	FPv%	Count
Party		Candidate	FPv%	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9
	DUP	Gregory Campbell *	30.05%	2,374
	DUP	Margaret Buchanan*	10.27%	811	1,402.76
	Ulster Unionist	James Guy*	10.35%	818	920.96	937.04	999.92	1,001.92	1,159.96
	SDLP	Michael Fegan*	11.06%	874	875.56	875.56	875.56	985.56	1,071.56	1,201.56
	Ulster Unionist	George Duddy	5.90%	466	532.56	556.56	637.68	638.92	690.48	691.48	693.48	1,136.44
	DUP	Annette Hamilton	2.10%	166	560.16	777.84	786.08	786.08	803.16	803.16	803.16	894.12
	SDLP	Paul O'Donnell	7.44%	588	588.52	588.52	589.52	640.52	674.52	762.52	817.52	820.52
	Ulster Unionist	Robert Ferris*	5.84%	461	508.84	517.48	543.52	544.52	594.52	597.52	597.52
	Sinn Féin	Michael Roddy	6.11%	483	483	483	484	535	535
	Alliance	Robert McCullough	5.43%	429	434.2	434.92	439.92	446.92
	Irish Independence	Robert Concannon	3.30%	261	262.04	263	263.52
	Ulster Unionist	Andrew McManus	2.14%	169	185.64	187.56
Electorate: 11,705 Valid: 7,900 (67.49%) Spoilt: 144 Quota: 1,129 Turnout: 8,044 (68.72%)

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References

1 2 "Local Government Elections 1985-1989: Derry". www.ark.ac.uk.
1 2 3 4 5 "Local Government Results 1985". EONI. Retrieved 11 August 2021.

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[Derry-1] 1 2 "Local Government Elections 1985-1989: Derry". www.ark.ac.uk.

[Results-2] 1 2 3 4 5 "Local Government Results 1985". EONI. Retrieved 11 August 2021.

[1]

[2]

v t e Council elections in County Londonderry
Causeway Coast and Glens Borough Council	2014 2019
Derry City and Strabane District Council	2014 2019
Mid Ulster District Council	2014 2019
Coleraine Borough Council	1973 1977 1981 1985 1989 1993 1997 2001 2005 2011 Abolished
Derry City Council	1920 1946 1949 1952 1955 1958 1961 1964 1967 1973 1977 1981 1985 1989 1993 1997 2001 2005 2011 Abolished
Limavady Borough Council	1973 1977 1981 1985 1989 1993 1997 2001 2005 2011 Abolished
Magherafelt District Council	1973 1977 1981 1985 1989 1993 1997 2001 2005 2011 Abolished
Londonderry County Council	1899 1902 1905 1908 1911 1914 1920 1924 1927 1930 1933 1937 1964 1967 Abolished

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