1996 Hertsmere Borough Council election

1996 Hertsmere Borough Council election

←  1995 2 May 1996 (1996-05-02) 1998  →
13 out of 39 seats to Hertsmere Borough Council 20 seats needed for a majority
Registered	46,540
Turnout	37.0% (4.4%)
First party Second party   Party Labour Conservative Seats won 7 3 Seats after 22 8 Seat change 3 6 Popular vote 7,162 6,939 Percentage 41.6% 40.3% Swing 15.9% 8.6%   Third party Fourth party   Party Liberal Democrats Independent Seats won 3 0 Seats after 8 1 Seat change 3 Popular vote 2,839 275 Percentage 16.5% 1.6% Swing 7.5% 0.2%
Winner of each seat at the 1996 Hertsmere Borough Council election. Wards in white were not contested.
Control before election No overall control Control after election Labour

The 1996 Hertsmere Borough Council election took place on 2 May 1996 to elect members of Hertsmere Borough Council in Hertfordshire, England. ^[1] This was on the same day as other local elections.

Summary

Election result

1996 Hertsmere Borough Council election [2]
Party		This election			Full council			This election
		Seats	Net	Seats %	Other	Total	Total %	Votes	Votes %	+/−
	Labour	7	3	53.8	15	22	56.4	7,162	41.6	–15.9
	Conservative	3	6	23.1	5	8	20.5	6,936	40.3	+8.6
	Liberal Democrats	3	3	23.1	5	8	20.5	2,839	16.5	+7.5
	Independent	0		0.0	1	1	2.6	275	1.6	–0.2

Ward results

Incumbent councillors standing for re-election are marked with an asterisk (*). Changes in seats do not take into account by-elections or defections.

Aldenham West

Aldenham West

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	J. Cowen	725	45.1	–1.0
	Labour	P. Halsey*	709	44.1	–9.8
	Liberal Democrats	R. Gill	172	10.7	N/A
Majority			16	1.0	N/A
Turnout			1,606	43.7	+2.1
Registered electors			3,679
	Conservative gain from Labour		Swing	4.4

Cowley

Cowley

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	S. Williams	914	80.3	–3.2
	Conservative	P. Brew	224	19.7	+3.2
Majority			690	60.6	–6.4
Turnout			1,138	25.1	–6.2
Registered electors			4,600
	Labour hold		Swing	3.2

Heath North

Heath North

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal Democrats	L. Hodgson	844	53.8	–5.9
	Conservative	J. Slade	520	33.1	+1.6
	Labour	A. Lemon	205	13.1	+4.3
Majority			324	20.7	–7.5
Turnout			1,569	39.5	–8.5
Registered electors			3,993
	Liberal Democrats gain from Conservative		Swing	3.8

Heath South

Heath South

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	P. Riches*	833	59.9	+7.2
	Labour	D. Bearfield	311	22.4	+8.7
	Liberal Democrats	P. Forsyth	247	17.8	–15.9
Majority			522	37.5	+18.5
Turnout			1,391	33.9	–5.0
Registered electors			4,116
	Conservative hold		Swing	0.8

Hillside

Hillside

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	J. Kentish*	766	77.8	–1.1
	Conservative	D. McKee	219	22.2	+1.1
Majority			547	55.6	–2.2
Turnout			985	30.3	–3.7
Registered electors			3,241
	Labour hold		Swing	1.1

Lyndhurst

Lyndhurst

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	B. Kelly*	688	75.4	–1.7
	Conservative	J. Kempton	225	24.6	+1.7
Majority			463	50.8	–3.4
Turnout			913	29.2	–4.5
Registered electors			3,079
	Labour hold		Swing	1.7

Potters Bar Central

Potters Bar Central

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	M. Brilliant	643	52.1	+19.3
	Conservative	P. Spratt*	592	47.9	+8.8
Majority			51	4.1	N/A
Turnout			1,235	36.3	–10.7
Registered electors			3,426
	Labour gain from Conservative		Swing	5.3

Potters Bar East

Potters Bar East

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	S. Aldrich	946	53.4	+0.5
	Conservative	H. Spratt	824	46.6	+12.0
Majority			122	6.9	–11.8
Turnout			1,770	39.0	–2.6
Registered electors			4,491
	Labour gain from Conservative		Swing	5.8

Potters Bar North

Potters Bar North

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	J. Donne*	816	67.0	+39.0
	Labour	M. Powell	402	33.0	+24.4
Majority			414	34.0	N/A
Turnout			1,218	35.8	–16.1
Registered electors			3,452
	Conservative hold		Swing	7.3

Potters Bar South

Potters Bar South

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	E. Carey	506	42.6	–0.5
	Conservative	C. Calcutt	408	34.3	–4.4
	Independent	D. Martin	275	23.1	N/A
Majority			98	8.2	+3.9
Turnout			1,189	46.1	–2.3
Registered electors			2,579
	Labour gain from Conservative		Swing	2.0

Potters Bar West

Potters Bar West

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	J. Heywood	613	44.2	–5.3
	Conservative	J. Usher*	595	42.9	+8.1
	Liberal Democrats	C. Dean	180	13.0	–2.7
Majority			18	1.3	–13.4
Turnout			1,388	43.1	–0.4
Registered electors			3,233
	Labour gain from Conservative		Swing	6.7

St. James East

St. James East

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal Democrats	T. Hucklesby	745	57.8	–5.9
	Conservative	C. Keates*	340	26.4	+5.1
	Labour	M. Reid	203	15.8	+0.8
Majority			405	31.4	–11.0
Turnout			1,288	41.8	–6.0
Registered electors			3,090
	Liberal Democrats gain from Conservative		Swing	5.5

St. James West

St. James West

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal Democrats	P. Page	651	42.8	–9.6
	Conservative	A. Attwood*	615	40.4	+6.6
	Labour	G. De Groot	256	16.8	+3.1
Majority			36	2.4	–16.2
Turnout			1,522	42.9	–3.4
Registered electors			3,561
	Liberal Democrats gain from Conservative		Swing	8.1

References

1. "Hertsmere Borough Council Election Results 1973-2012" (PDF). Colin Rallings & Michael Thrasher . The Elections Centre, Plymouth University . Retrieved 12 January 2026.
2. "Composition calculator". Colin Rallings & Michael Thrasher . The Elections Centre, Plymouth University . Retrieved 12 January 2026.