The politics of Edinburgh are expressed in the deliberations and decisions of the City of Edinburgh Council, in elections to the council, the Scottish Parliament and the UK Parliament.
Falkirk is one of 32 unitary authority council areas of Scotland. It was formed on 1 April 1996 by way of the Local Government etc. (Scotland) Act 1994 from the exact boundaries of Falkirk District, one of three parts of the Central region created in 1975, which was abolished at that time. Prior to the 1975 reorganisation, the majority of the council area was part of the historic county of Stirlingshire, and a small part, namely Bo'ness and Blackness, was part of the former county of West Lothian.
Local government in Scotland comprises thirty-two local authorities, commonly referred to as Scottish councils. Each council provides public services, including education, social care, waste management, libraries and planning. Councils receive the majority of their funding from the Scottish Government, but operate independently and are accountable to their local electorates. Councils raise additional income via the Council Tax, a locally variable domestic property tax, and Business rates, a non-domestic property tax.
West Lothian Council is the local authority for the West Lothian area of Scotland and has 33 elected members. Councillors are generally elected every five years, with the next election falling on May 5th 2022.
Elections to West Dunbartonshire Council were held on 3 May 2007, the same day as the other Scottish local government elections and the Scottish Parliament general election. The election was the first one using six new wards created as a result of the Local Governance (Scotland) Act 2004, each ward will elect three or four councillors using the single transferable vote system form of proportional representation. The new wards replace 22 single-member wards which used the plurality system of election.
Elections to North Lanarkshire Council were held on 3 May 2007, the same day as the other Scottish local government elections and the Scottish Parliament general election. The election was the first one using 20 new wards created as a results of the Local Governance (Scotland) Act 2004, each ward will elect three or four councillors using the single transferable vote system a form of proportional representation. The new wards replace 70 single-member wards which used the plurality system of election.
Elections to Clackmannanshire Council were held on 3 May 2007, the same day as the other Scottish local government elections and the Scottish Parliament general election. The election was the first one using 5 new wards created as a result of the Local Governance (Scotland) Act 2004, each ward will elect three or four councillors using the single transferable vote system form of proportional representation. The new wards replace 18 single-member wards which used the plurality system of election.
Elections to South Lanarkshire Council were held on 3 May 2007, the same day as the other Scottish local government elections and the Scottish Parliament general election. The election was the first one using 20 new wards created as a result of the Local Governance (Scotland) Act 2004, each ward will elect three or four councillors using the single transferable vote system, a form of proportional representation, for a total of 67 seats. The new wards replaced 67 single-member wards which used the plurality system of election.
Elections to Midlothian Council were held on 3 May 2007, the same day as the other Scottish local government elections and the Scottish Parliament general election. The election was the first one using six new wards created as a result of the Local Governance (Scotland) Act 2004. Each ward will elect three or four councillors using the single transferable vote system form of proportional representation. The new wards replace 18 single-member wards which used the plurality system of election.
Elections to East Lothian Council were held on 3 May 2007, the same day as the other Scottish local government elections and the Scottish Parliament general election.
Elections to East Renfrewshire Council were held on 3 May 2007 the same day as the other Scottish local government elections and the Scottish Parliament general election.
Elections to Inverclyde Council were held on 3 May 2007 the same day as the Scottish Parliament general election. The election was the first one using six new wards created as a result of the Local Governance (Scotland) Act 2004; each ward will elect three or four councillors using the single transferable vote system, a form of proportional representation. The new wards replace 20 single-member wards which used the plurality system of election.
The 2012 Scottish local elections, were held on 3 May 2012 in all 32 local authorities. The Scottish National Party (SNP) overtook Labour to win the highest share of the vote, and retained and strengthened its position as the party with most councillors. Labour also made gains, while the Liberal Democrats experienced meltdown, losing over half their seats and falling behind the Conservatives. For the first time since the introduction of the Single Transferable Vote system, the SNP won majority control of 2 councils, from no overall control. Labour also won majority control of 2 councils from no overall control, while retaining majority control over 2 councils.
Elections to Renfrewshire Council were held on 3 May 2007, the same day as the other Scottish local government elections and the Scottish Parliament general election. The election was the first one using 11 new wards created as a result of the Local Governance (Scotland) Act 2004, each ward will elect three or four councillors using the single transferable vote system form of proportional representation. The new wards replace 40 single-member wards which used the plurality system of election.
Elections to Stirling Council were held on 3 May 2007, the same day as the other Scottish local government elections and the Scottish Parliament general election. The election was the first one using seven new wards created as a result of the Local Governance (Scotland) Act 2004. Each ward will elect three or four councillors using the single transferable vote system form of proportional representation. The new wards replace 22 single-member wards which used the plurality system of election.
The City of Edinburgh Council is the local government authority for the City of Edinburgh. It was created in 1996 under the Local Government etc. (Scotland) Act 1994, with the boundaries of the post-1975 City of Edinburgh District Council of the Lothian region.
The 2012 West Lothian Council election took place on 3 May 2012 to elect members of West Lothian Council. The election will use the 9 wards created as a result of the Local Governance (Scotland) Act 2004, with each ward electing three or four Councillors using the single transferable vote system form of proportional representation, with 33 Councillors being elected. The Bathgate Ward gained an additional seat for the 2012 elections. The election saw Labour remain the largest party on the Council as they gained 2 seats. The Scottish National Party also made 2 net gains and significantly increased their vote share, outpolling Labour in terms of votes cast. The Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party retained their single seat on the Council and so to did the Independents. The Action to Save St. John's Hospital group were completely wiped out from the authority losing all of their 3 seats.
Elections to East Lothian Council were held on 3 May 2012, on the same day as the other Scottish local government elections. The election used the 7 wards created as a result of the Local Governance (Scotland) Act 2004, with each ward electing three or four councillors using the single transferable vote system form of proportional representation, with 23 councillors elected.
Elections to East Lothian Council were held on 4 May 2017 on the same day as the other Scottish local government elections. The election consisted of 6 wards electing three or four councillors using the single transferable vote system form of proportional representation, with 22 councillors elected.
The 2022 West Lothian Council election took place on 5 May 2022. Elected positions in all 9 wards created as a result of the Local Governance (Scotland) Act 2004 were up for election, with each ward electing three or four Councillors using the single transferable vote (STV) system form of proportional representation, with 33 Councillors being elected in total.
