1998 Barking and Dagenham London Borough Council election

1998 Barking and Dagenham Council election

←  1994 7 May 1998 (1998-05-07) 2002  →
All 51 council seats to Barking and Dagenham London Borough Council 26 seats needed for a majority
Registered	112,374 [1]
Turnout	28,559, 25.41% ( 13.31) [1]
First party Second party Third party   Leader Unknown Unknown Stephen W. Churchman Party Labour Residents Liberal Democrats Leader since Unknown Unknown 1994 Leader's seat Unknown Unknown Eastbury Last election 47 seats, 73.35% 3 seats, 3.91% 1 seats, 17.39% Seats before 46 3 1 Seats won 47 3 1 Seat change Popular vote 44,885 4,550 11,424 Percentage 72.40% 7.34% 18.42% Swing 0.95 3.43 1.03
Council control before election Labour Council control after election Labour

The 1998 Barking and Dagenham London Borough Council election took place on 7 May 1998 to elect members of Barking and Dagenham London Borough Council in London, England. The whole council was up for election and the Labour Party stayed in overall control of the council. ^{[2] [3] [4]}

Background

In the years between this election and the last there were 2 by-elections to replace councillor who either resigned or died, however none of these elections resulted in the seats changing parties. ^[5]

The election saw the Conservative Party only put up five candidates in the election, ^[6] and they failed to win any seats on the council. ^[7] The Labour leader of the council, George Brooker, stood down at the election after 51 years. ^[8] He opposed the Greater London Authority referendum that took place at the same time as the election, however Barking and Dagenham saw 73.49% vote in favour and 26.51% against. ^{[8] [9]} Overall turnout in the election was 25.41%. ^[3]

Shortly before the election a single Labour seat became vacant and there was not enough time to hold a by-election to replace them, meaning that the composition of the council just before the elections was as follows: ^[10]

↓

46	1	3	1
Labour	Lib Dem	Resident	Vacant

Election result

Barking and Dagenham local election result 1998 ^{[2] [11] [3] [4]}

Party		Seats	Gains	Losses	Net gain/loss	Seats %	Votes %	Votes	+/−
	Labour	47	0	0		92.16	72.40	44,885	0.95
	Residents	3	0	0		5.88	7.34	4,550	3.43
	Liberal Democrats	1	0	0		1.96	18.42	11,424	1.03
	Conservative	0	0	0		0.00	1.84	1,140	2.06
Total		51						61,999

After the election the composition of the council was as follows:

↓

47	1	3
Labour	Lib Dem	Resident

Ward results

(*) - Indicates an incumbent candidate

(†) - Indicates an incumbent candidate standing in a different ward

Abbey

Abbey (3) ^{[3] [4] [11]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Jeannette Alexander*	1,223	71.49	10.58
	Labour	Graham Bramley*	1,054
	Labour	Mohammed Fani*	976
	Liberal Democrats	Brian Beadle	495	28.51	16.50
	Liberal Democrats	Sheila Clay	453
	Liberal Democrats	Siobhan Jebb	349
Registered electors			6,958		258
Turnout			1,901	27.32	12.41
Rejected ballots			36	1.89	1.66
	Labour hold
	Labour hold
	Labour hold

Alibon

Alibon (2) ^{[3] [4] [11]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Terence Wade*	727	72.01	12.87
	Labour	Ernest White*	678
	Liberal Democrats	Catherine Kelly	141	14.46	0.66
	Conservative	Malcolm Beatty	132	13.53	New
Registered electors			4,135		117
Turnout			996	24.09	12.81
Rejected ballots			4	0.40	0.02
	Labour hold
	Labour hold

Becontree

Becontree (2) ^{[3] [4] [11]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Edith Bradley*	754	73.89	7.45
	Labour	John Wainwright*	610
	Liberal Democrats	Anthony Stepton	241	26.11	7.45
Registered electors			5,190		7
Turnout			1,027	19.79	14.17
Rejected ballots			10	0.97	0.34
	Labour hold
	Labour hold

Cambell

Cambell (3) ^{[3] [4] [11]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Joan Rawlinson*	1,074	79.64	3.94
	Labour	Jeffrey Porter	1,047
	Labour	June van Roten*	1,041
	Liberal Democrats	Michael Mailey	289	20.36	3.94
	Liberal Democrats	John Kelly	250
Registered electors			6,459		224
Turnout			1,510	23.38	14.94
Rejected ballots			15	0.99	0.29
	Labour hold
	Labour hold
	Labour hold

Chadwell Heath

Chadwell Heath (3) ^{[3] [4] [11]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Residents	Ronald Curtis*	1,347	62.84	13.74
	Residents	Albert Gibbs*	1,344
	Residents	Robert Jeyes*	1,287
	Labour	Donna Beckett	619	27.63	10.72
	Labour	Peter Metia	593
	Labour	Nana-Aba Andah	537
	Conservative	Mary Justice	201	9.53	3.14
Registered electors			6,738		97
Turnout			2,136	31.70	8.91
Rejected ballots			12	0.56	0.38
	Residents hold
	Residents hold
	Residents hold

Eastbrook

Eastbrook (3) ^{[3] [4] [11]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Lawrence Bunn*	1,238	71.88	11.54
	Labour	Leonard Collins† [n 1]	1,089
	Labour	Sidney Summerfield	1,077
	Liberal Democrats	Graham Churchman	444	28.12	11.54
Registered electors			6,551		286
Turnout			1,646	25.13	9.96
Rejected ballots			31	1.88	1.13
	Labour hold
	Labour hold
	Labour hold

Eastbury

Eastbury (2) ^{[3] [4] [11]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal Democrats	Stephen Churchman*	870	51.65	0.86
	Labour	Patrick Manley*	833	48.35	0.86
	Liberal Democrats	Daniel Felton	668
	Labour	David Miles	607
Registered electors			4,190		185
Turnout			1,679	40.07	16.07
Rejected ballots			16	0.95	0.46
	Liberal Democrats gain from Labour
	Labour gain from Liberal Democrats

Fanshawe

Fanshawe (3) ^{[3] [4] [11]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Frederick Jones*	1,092	72.50	9.93
	Labour	Herbert Collins	1,065
	Labour	Raymond Parkin*	927
	Liberal Democrats	Winifred Chapman	390	27.50	9.93
Registered electors			6,153		214
Turnout			1,521	24.72	12.71
Rejected ballots			13	0.85	0.47
	Labour hold
	Labour hold
	Labour hold

Gascoigne

Gascoigne (3) ^{[3] [4] [11]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Kathleen Flint*	958	77.69	16.42
	Labour	Valerie Rush*	851
	Labour	Milton McKenzie	800
	Liberal Democrats	Claire Stepton	282	22.31	16.42
	Liberal Democrats	Bryan Tester	238
	Liberal Democrats	Robert Pembroke	229
Registered electors			5,451		504
Turnout			1,277	23.43	11.06
Rejected ballots			20	1.57	1.33
	Labour hold
	Labour hold
	Labour hold

Goresbrook

Goresbrook (2) ^{[3] [4] [11]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Terence Power*	805	66.87	16.88
	Labour	Alan Thomas*	723
	Liberal Democrats	Liam Smith	413	33.13	16.88
	Liberal Democrats	Peter Downs	344
Registered electors			5,265		99
Turnout			1,291	24.52	13.83
Rejected ballots			11	0.85	0.03
	Labour hold
	Labour hold

Heath

Heath (3) ^{[3] [4] [11]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Charles Fairbrass	1,150	68.75	21.92
	Labour	Sidney Kallar	1,075
	Labour	John Lawrence	1,002
	Conservative	Linda Hallewell	265	16.94	New
	Liberal Democrats	Alison South	251	14.31	4.98
	Liberal Democrats	Margaret Tester	197
Registered electors			6,556		209
Turnout			1,553	23.69	13.13
Rejected ballots			6	0.39	0.53
	Labour hold
	Labour hold
	Labour hold

Longbridge

Longbridge (3) ^{[3] [4] [11]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Madeleine Baker	1,074	56.96	7.01
	Labour	Susan Bramley	1,069
	Labour	Nirmal Gill*	870
	Liberal Democrats	Alan Cooper	786	43.04	19.55
	Liberal Democrats	Jayne Cooper	778
	Liberal Democrats	Edith Downs	713
Registered electors			6,707		19
Turnout			2,023	30.16	15.16
Rejected ballots			47	2.32	2.09
	Labour hold
	Labour hold
	Labour hold

Manor

Manor (2) ^{[3] [4] [11]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	June Conyard* [n 2]	803	76.95	4.78
	Labour	Rita Hannah-Rogers*	753
	Liberal Democrats	David Boorman	233	23.05	4.78
Registered electors			4,710		60
Turnout			1,080	22.93	15.33
Rejected ballots			10	0.93	0.37
	Labour hold
	Labour hold

Marks Gate

Marks Gate (2) ^{[3] [4] [11]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Maureen Worby*	651	78.28	0.62
	Labour	Colin Pond	524
	Liberal Democrats	Anthony Pace	167	21.72	0.62
	Liberal Democrats	Andrew Jebb	159
Registered electors			3,580		41
Turnout			896	25.03	12.33
Rejected ballots			13	1.45	0.92
	Labour hold
	Labour hold

Parsloes

Parsloes (2) ^{[3] [4] [11]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Jean Blake	763	76.68	27.85
	Labour	Steven Gill* [n 3]	700
	Liberal Democrats	Emma Smith	225	23.32	9.93
	Liberal Democrats	Wendy Churchman	220
Registered electors			4,641		224
Turnout			1,091	23.51	15.34
Rejected ballots			13	1.19	0.08
	Labour hold
	Labour hold

River

River (2) ^{[3] [4] [11]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Patricia Twomey*	768	73.66	6.20
	Labour	Inder Jamu*	597
	Liberal Democrats	Hayley Downs	244	26.34	6.20
Registered electors			4,754		74
Turnout			985	20.72	12.92
Rejected ballots			8	0.81	0.19
	Labour hold
	Labour hold

Thames

Thames (2) ^{[3] [4] [11]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	George Shaw*	941	72.26	4.64
	Labour	Royston Patient*	914
	Residents	Edward Mussett	287	22.28	New
	Residents	Charles Lambert	285
	Liberal Democrats	David Oram	70	5.46	4.69
Registered electors			4,458		158
Turnout			1,345	30.17	16.32
Rejected ballots			9	0.67	0.37
	Labour hold
	Labour hold

Triptons

Triptons (3) ^{[3] [4] [11]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	John Davis*	1,167	78.31	5.18
	Labour	Margaret West	1,011
	Labour	Cameron Geddes*	920
	Liberal Democrats	June Griffin	297	21.69	5.18
	Liberal Democrats	Paul South	275
Registered electors			6,414		214
Turnout			1,521	23.71	12.06
Rejected ballots			14	0.92	0.03
	Labour hold
	Labour hold
	Labour hold

Valence

Valence (3) ^{[3] [4] [11]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Bryan Osborn*	939	74.17	7.81
	Labour	Jean Bruce*	915
	Labour	Vera Cridland	902
	Liberal Democrats	Sally Storer	320	25.83	7.81
Registered electors			6,298		204
Turnout			1,400	22.23	16.17
Rejected ballots			15	1.07	0.55
	Labour hold
	Labour hold
	Labour hold

Village

Village (3) ^{[3] [4] [11]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Katherine Golden*	1,146	70.17	9.65
	Labour	Darrin Best*	1,112
	Labour	William Dale*	1,041
	Conservative	Kenneth Coombs	280	17.29	8.17
	Conservative	Susan Hallewell	262
	Liberal Democrats	Anthony Pickford	209	12.54	1.48
	Liberal Democrats	Trevor Johnson	184
Registered electors			7,166		32
Turnout			1,681	23.46	13.41
Rejected ballots			4	0.24	0.01
	Labour hold
	Labour hold
	Labour hold

Notes

1. Collins was a sitting councillor representing the Valence ward
2. Conyard was elected in a by-election triggered by the resignation of Cllr Alastair Hannah-Rogers ^[5]
3. Gill was elected in a by-election triggered by the death of Cllr Joseph Butler in 1995 ^[5]

References

1. Minors, Michael; Grenham, Dennis. "London Borough Council Elections - 7 May 1998 - including the Greater London Authority referendum results - Ward Voting Statistics" (PDF). London Datastore. p. 188. Retrieved 10 July 2025.
2. "Local Elections results". The Times . 9 May 1998. p. 46.
3. "London Borough Council Elections 7 May 1998" (PDF). London Datastore. London Residuary Body. Archived from the original (PDF) on 22 February 2015. Retrieved 25 May 2019.
4. "London Borough of Barking & Dagenham Election Results 1964-2010" (PDF). Elections Centre. Plymouth University. Retrieved 25 May 2019.
5. Minors, Michael; Grenham, Dennis. "London Borough Council Elections - 7 May 1998 - including the Greater London Authority referendum results - By-elections" (PDF). London Datastore. London Research Centre. p. 4. Retrieved 9 August 2025.
6. Waugh, Paul (15 April 1998). "Tories write off London no go areas". Evening Standard . p. 6.
7. "Policy and politics: Local Elections: Analysis: Council poll results". The Guardian . 9 May 1998. p. 16.
8. Barker, Paul (3 May 1998). "Enough to make a cat laugh". The Sunday Times . p. 8.
9. "London referendum". The Daily Mirror . 8 May 1998. p. 2.
10. Minors, Michael; Grenham, Dennis. "London Borough Council Elections - 7 May 1998 - including the Greater London Authority referendum results - Changes 1994-98" (PDF). London Datastore. London Research Centre. p. 1. Retrieved 9 August 2025.
11. "London Borough Council Elections 7 May 1998" (PDF). Barking and Dagenham Council elections. Barking and Dagenham Council. Retrieved 27 May 2019.