1992 Epping Forest District Council election

1992 Epping Forest District Council election

←  1991 7 May 1992 (1992-05-07) 1994  →
20 out of 59 seats to Epping Forest District Council 30 seats needed for a majority
First party Second party Third party   Party Conservative Labour Loughton Residents Last election 30 seats, 36.9% 14 seats, 30.6% 7 seats, 5.3% Seats before 30 14 7 Seats after 28 14 7 Seat change 2 Popular vote 10,287 4,386 2,555 Percentage 44.9% 19.1% 11.1% Swing 8.0% 11.5% 5.3%   Fourth party Fifth party Sixth party   Party SDP Liberal Democrats Epping Residents Last election 2 seats, 4.7% 2 seats, 15.8% 1 seat, 4.0% Seats before 2 2 1 Seats after 3 2 2 Seat change 1 1 Popular vote 1,888 1,889 1,129 Percentage 8.2% 8.2% 4.9% Swing 3.5% 7.6% 0.9%   Seventh party Eighth party   Party Independent Ind. Conservative Last election 2 seats, 3.9% 1 seat, 0.0% Seats before 2 1 Seats after 2 1 Seat change Popular vote 617 59 Percentage 2.6% 0.2% Swing 1.3 N/A
Winner of each seat at the 1991 Epping Forest District Council election
Leader before election Conservative Leader after election Conservative minority administration No overall control

The 1992 Epping Forest District Council election took place on 7 May 1992 to elect members of Epping Forest District Council in Essex, England. 20 members of Epping Forest District Council in Essex were elected. The council remained under Conservative majority control.

Background

The 1992 Epping Forest District Council election took place in May 1992 to elect members of Epping Forest District Council in Essex, England. As with other local elections across England, one-third of the council's seats were contested. The election occurred against the backdrop of an ongoing national recession, which had seen over two years of rising unemployment, peaking at 2.6 million by March 1992. Economic recovery had begun to show tentative signs, with small growth recorded in the early months of 1992, though concerns over jobs, public services, and local taxation remained prominent in voters’ minds.

Turnout varied widely across wards, ranging from just over 29% in Debden Green to nearly 60% in Roothing Country, reflecting differing levels of voter engagement depending on local issues and contest intensity. The results also demonstrated several narrow margins, particularly in competitive wards such as Buckhurst Hill West and Epping Lindsey, signaling areas where opposition parties could target in future elections.

Overall, the 1992 election reiterated the Conservative Party’s dominance in Epping Forest District Council while providing opportunities for Labour, the Liberal Democrats, and local resident associations to consolidate support in specific areas. The election outcomes mirrored broader national political dynamics, with economic uncertainty and public debate over government performance influencing local voter behaviour.

Results summary

^[1]

1992 Epping Forest District Council election
Party		This election			Full council			This election
		Seats	Net	Seats %	Other	Total	Total %	Votes	Votes %	+/−
	Conservative	11	2	55.0	17	28	47.4	10,287	44.9	8.0
	Labour	3		15.0	11	14	23.7	4,386	19.1	11.5
	Loughton Residents	3		3.0	5.0	7	11.8	2,555	11.1	5.3
	SDP	1	1	1.6	2	3	5.0	1,888	8.2	3.5
	Liberal Democrats	0		0.0	2	2	3.3	1,889	8.2	7.6
	Epping Residents	1	1	1.6	1	2	3.3	1,129	4.9	3.5
	Independent	1		1.6	1	2	3.3	617	2.6	1.3
	Ind. Social Democrat	0		0.0	0	0	0.0	105	0.4	N/A
	Ind. Conservative	0		0.0	0	1	0.0	59	0.2	N/A

Ward results

Buckhurst Hill East

Buckhurst Hill East

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	SDP	Ms J. Croke	873	50.3	7.3
	Conservative	P. Yearly*	505	29.1	2.5
	Liberal Democrats	P. Spencer	202	11.6	8.1
	Labour	Ms L. Baddock	156	9.0	1.8
Majority			368	21.2	N/A
Turnout			1,736	43.9	3.5
Registered electors			3,953
	SDP gain from Conservative		Swing

Buckhurst Hill West

Buckhurst Hill West

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	J. Fairbanks	897	46.3	2.1
	SDP	P. Mason	878	45.3	N/A
	Liberal Democrats	D. Jenkinson	163	8.4	16.5
Majority			19	1.0	19.7
Turnout			1,938	40.1	0.3
Registered electors			4,838
	Conservative hold		Swing

Chigwell Village

Chigwell Village

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	J. Gilliham*	796	79.5	11.1
	Liberal Democrats	Ms J. Netherclift	146	14.6	17.0
	Ind. Conservative	A. Marshall	59	5.9	N/A
Majority			650	64.9	28.1
Turnout			1,001	31.0	15.0
Registered electors			3,229
	Conservative hold		Swing

Debden Green

Debden Green

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	C. Huckle*	785	67.9	0.9
	Conservative	L. Daniel	371	32.1	9.8
Majority			414	35.8	8.6
Turnout			1,156	29.7	5.8
Registered electors			3,896
	Labour hold		Swing

Epping Hemnall

Epping Hemnall

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	P. Burns	801	48.6	5.8
	Epping Residents	J. Solomons	458	27.8	8.0
	Labour	B. Johns	236	14.3	3.7
	Liberal Democrats	A. Black	152	9.2	10.2
Majority			343	20.8	2.2
Turnout			1,647	35.8	10.0
Registered electors			4,603
	Conservative hold		Swing

Epping Lindsey

Epping Lindsey

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Epping Residents	Ms J. Jones	671	38.3	3.9
	Conservative	R. Brady*	639	36.5	9.5
	Labour	D. Sturrock	263	15.0	3.2
	Liberal Democrats	J. Page	177	10.1	10.3
Majority			32	1.8	N/A
Turnout			1,750	36.2	9.4
Registered electors			4,832
	Epping Residents Association gain from Conservative		Swing

Grange Hill

Grange Hill

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	M. Tomkins*	931	61.0	11.8
	Liberal Democrats	I. Gold	495	32.4	10.1
	Labour	B. Mooney	100	6.6	1.6
Majority			436	28.6	21.9
Turnout			1,526	32.8	8.2
Registered electors			4,659
	Conservative hold		Swing

High Ongar

High Ongar

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	D. Morton*	241	62.0	6.8
	Ind. Social Democrat	S. Ormsby	105	27.0	10.3
	Labour	K. Tait	43	11.1	3.6
Majority			136	35.0	17.0
Turnout			389	44.3	6.8
Registered electors			879
	Conservative hold		Swing

Loughton Broadway

Loughton Broadway

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	H. Worby*	1,060	71.4	0.4
	Conservative	Ms I. Holman	425	28.6	8.1
Majority			635	42.8	9.5
Turnout			1,485	36.0	5.4
Registered electors			4,124
	Labour hold		Swing

Loughton Forest

Loughton Forest

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Loughton Residents	Ms K. Ellis*	688	55.2	0.6
	Conservative	E. Buttling	484	38.8	4.9
	Labour	Ms E. Stewart	74	5.9	5.6
Majority			204	16.4	4.3
Turnout			1,246	43.0	5.6
Registered electors			2,898
	Loughton Residents hold		Swing

Loughton Roding

Loughton Roding

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	S. Goodwin	819	45.9	4.0
	Conservative	T. Morris	538	30.2	4.6
	Loughton Residents	Ms P. Meadows	427	23.9	8.7
Majority			281	15.8	N/A
Turnout			1,784	43.8	0.8
Registered electors			4,072
	Labour gain from Conservative		Swing

Loughton St. Johns

Loughton St. Johns

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Loughton Residents	R. Wilmot*	749	53.1	2.4
	Conservative	Ms M. Bhonsle	487	34.5	4.4
	Labour	A. Crick	174	12.3	2.2
Majority			262	18.6	6.8
Turnout			1,410	34.9	6.1
Registered electors			4,037
	Loughton Residents hold		Swing

Loughton St. Marys

Loughton St. Marys

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Loughton Residents	M. Wardle	691	58.0	5.8
	Conservative	L. Marriott	324	27.2	0.4
	Labour	S. Barnes	176	14.8	5.4
Majority			367	30.8	6.2
Turnout			1,191	36.3	11.3
Registered electors			3,278
	Loughton Residents hold		Swing

Passingford

Passingford

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	J. Pledge*	N/A	N/A	N/A
Majority			N/A	N/A	N/A
Turnout			N/A	N/A	N/A
Registered electors			1,544
	Conservative hold		Swing

Roothing Country

Roothing Country

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	W. White	456	60.2	6.5
	Liberal Democrats	D. Kelly	301	39.8	6.5
Majority			155	20.4	13.0
Turnout			757	59.9	11.2
Registered electors			1,264
	Conservative hold		Swing

Roydon

Roydon

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent	W. Easton*	617	83.9	N/A
	SDP	J. Bradshaw	118	16.1	N/A
Majority			499	67.8	N/A
Turnout			735	34.1	34.1
Registered electors			2,153
	Independent hold		Swing

Sheering

Sheering

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	M. Ridgewell*	485	68.6	31.4
	Labour	Ms J. Finlay	222	31.4	N/A
Majority			263	37.2	N/A
Turnout			707	35.3	35.3
Registered electors			2,003
	Conservative hold		Swing

Theydon Bois

Theydon Bois

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	W. Axon*	832	76.7	13.8
	Liberal Democrats	D. Weldon	253	23.3	0.6
Majority			579	53.4	13.2
Turnout			1,085	34.6	12.9
Registered electors			3,137
	Conservative hold		Swing

Waltham Abbey East

Waltham Abbey East

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Ms E. Webster	1,075	66.2	10.4
	Labour	F. Harewood	548	33.8	10.4
Majority			527	32.4	20.9
Turnout			1,623	34.0	7.5
Registered electors			4,778
	Conservative hold		Swing

Waltham Abbey Paternoster

Waltham Abbey Paternoster

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Ms J. Cave	774	56.8	18.8
	Labour	R. Sharp	589	43.2	18.8
Majority			185	13.6	N/A
Turnout			1,363	39.2	1.7
Registered electors			3,477
	Conservative gain from Labour		Swing

References

1. https://www.electionscentre.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/Epping-Forest-1973-2012.pdf