2011 Torridge District Council election

Map of the results of the 2011 Torridge District Council election. Conservatives in blue, Independents in grey, Liberal Democrats in yellow, Labour in red and Green party in green.

The 2011 Torridge District Council election took place on 5 May 2011 to elect members of Torridge District Council in Devon, England. The whole council was up for election and the council stayed under no overall control. ^[1]

Background

At the previous election in 2007 no party won a majority on the council with 13 Conservative, 13 independent, 8 Liberal Democrats and 2 Green party councillors elected. ^[2] However between 2007 and 2011 there were a number of changes on the council, with 3 Liberal Democrat councillors, Caroline Church, Simon Inch and Tony Inch, quitting the party in July 2007 to sit as independents. ^[3] All 3 would then join the Conservatives, with Simon and Tony Inch joining the Conservatives in April 2010 to back the local Conservative Member of Parliament Geoffrey Cox at the 2010 general election. ^{[4] [5]} There were also 2 by-elections in 2009, with the Liberal Democrats gaining a seat in Hartland and Bradworthy from an independent, but also losing a seat in Holsworthy to another independent. ^{[6] [7]}

11 of the 36 councillors stood down at the election, including the leader of the Conservative council James Morrish. ^[5] A total of 80 candidates stood at the election for the 36 seats contested, 25 Conservatives, 23 Liberal Democrats, 18 independents, 6 Labour and 4 each from the Green Party and UK Independence Party. ^[5] 3 independent candidates were elected with no opposition, Phil Pennington in Monkleigh and Littleham, Ken James in Tamarside and David Lausen in Winkleigh, ^[5] down from 7 unopposed candidates at the 2007 election. ^[2] Meanwhile, Len Ford, who had represented Appledore as a Liberal Democrat councillor, had left the party and contested Bideford East as an independent. ^[5]

Election result

The Conservatives won half of the seats on the council, falling 1 seat short of winning a majority. ^[8] This was the closest any political party had come to having a majority since the first election to the council in 1973. ^[9] Overall turnout at the election was 45.2%, ^[10] up from 42.1% in 2007. ^[11] This ranged from a high of 57.2% in Three Moors to a low of 32.3% in Bideford South. ^[9]

Independents dropped to 10 councillors, while the Liberal Democrats rose to 6 seats and the Greens won 1 seat. ^[8] Meanwhile, Labour won their first seat on the council since 2003, after David Brenton gained a seat in Bideford South from the mayor of Bideford, Conservative Philip Pester. ^[12] He was one of 14 new councillors after the election. ^[9]

Following the election Conservative Barry Parsons became the new leader of the council. ^[13]

Torridge local election result 2011 ^[10]

Party		Seats	Gains	Losses	Net gain/loss	Seats %	Votes %	Votes	+/−
	Conservative	18	3	1	+2	50.0	41.8	13,636	+10.9%
	Independent	10	0	4	-4	27.8	17.3	5,645	-10.5%
	Liberal Democrats	6	2	0	+2	16.7	26.2	8,545	-0.8%
	Labour	1	1	0	+1	2.8	6.8	2,207	+5.0%
	Green	1	0	1	-1	2.8	4.7	1,547	-4.7%
	UKIP	0	0	0	0	0	3.2	1,044	+0.1%

Ward results

Appledore (2 seats) ^[10]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Andrew Eastman	576
	Independent	Barry Edwards	348
	UKIP	Kenneth Davis	283
	Liberal Democrats	Andrew Gill	264
	Conservative	James Jackson	252
	Green	Peter Hames	193
	Liberal Democrats	Benjamin Lee	87
Turnout			2,003	51.6	+3.0
	Conservative hold		Swing
	Independent hold		Swing

Bideford East (3 seats) ^[10]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Mervyn Langmead	609
	Conservative	Pauline Davies	553
	Independent	Stephen Clarke	445
	Liberal Democrats	Susan Rose	379
	UKIP	Gaston Dezart	365
	Labour	Ian Hopkins	289
	Independent	Leonard Ford	288
	Independent	Alan Rayner	184
Turnout			3,112	34.9	-1.5
	Conservative gain from Independent		Swing
	Conservative hold		Swing
	Independent hold		Swing

Bideford North (3 seats) ^[10]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Green	Peter Christie	879
	Liberal Democrats	Trevor Johns	703
	Conservative	David Fulford	629
	Liberal Democrats	Hugo Barton	625
	Conservative	Mary Fulford	464
	Labour	Anne Brenton	445
	Independent	Emma Farrington	311
Turnout			4,056	42.6	+7.8
	Green hold		Swing
	Liberal Democrats hold		Swing
	Conservative hold		Swing

Bideford South (3 seats) ^[10]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Anthony Inch	503
	Conservative	Simon Inch	495
	Labour	David Brenton	484
	Conservative	Philip Pester	469
	Liberal Democrats	Robert Wootton	414
	Liberal Democrats	Mel Bushell	335
Turnout			2,700	32.3	+4.5
	Conservative hold		Swing
	Conservative hold		Swing
	Labour gain from Conservative		Swing

Broadheath ^[10]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Peter Watson	401	53.7
	Liberal Democrats	John Worden	346	46.3
Majority			55	7.4
Turnout			747	56.2
	Conservative hold		Swing

Clinton ^[10]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent	Philip Collins	574	80.6	+22.5
	Green	William Douglas-Mann	138	19.4	+19.4
Majority			436	61.2	+44.9
Turnout			712	55.6	+0.6
	Independent hold		Swing

Clovelly Bay ^[10]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal Democrats	Adam Symons	481	67.9
	Conservative	Alison Boyle	227	32.1
Majority			254	35.9
Turnout			708	54.7
	Liberal Democrats gain from Independent		Swing

Coham Bridge ^[10]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Gloria Tabor	543	74.2
	Liberal Democrats	James Richardson	189	25.8
Majority			354	48.4
Turnout			732	56.4
	Conservative hold		Swing

Forest ^[10]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Barry Parsons	592	85.1	+25.0
	Liberal Democrats	Julie Adnams-Hatch	104	14.9	+14.9
Majority			488	70.1	+49.9
Turnout			696	50.0	-1.7
	Conservative hold		Swing

Hartland and Bradworthy (2 seats) ^[10]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal Democrats	Brian Redwood	494
	Liberal Democrats	Anna Dart	473
	Conservative	Anthony Brewington	401
	Independent	Andrea Chick	271
	Conservative	Michael Footitt	245
	UKIP	Robin Julian	188
	Green	Keith Funnell	177
Turnout			2,249	53.2	+2.5
	Liberal Democrats hold		Swing
	Liberal Democrats hold		Swing

Holsworthy (2 seats) ^[10]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Michael Footitt	741
	Liberal Democrats	Howard Ratledge	493
	Liberal Democrats	Charlene Le-Roy	489
Turnout			1,723	41.4	-5.4
	Conservative gain from Independent		Swing
	Liberal Democrats gain from Independent		Swing

Kenwith ^[10]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Kathy Murdoch	406	56.3	+1.8
	Liberal Democrats	Karen Heard	162	22.5	+22.5
	Labour	Geoffrey Hastings	153	21.2	+21.2
Majority			244	33.8	+24.8
Turnout			721	51.3	+4.5
	Conservative hold		Swing

Monkleigh and Littleham ^[10]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent	Phil Pennington	unopposed
	Independent hold		Swing

Northam (3 seats) ^[10]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Jane Whittaker	1,003
	Conservative	Roger Johnson	939
	Conservative	John Himan	924
	Liberal Democrats	David Berryman	589
	Liberal Democrats	Kay Renton	526
	Labour	David Rowe	524
Turnout			4,505	43.5	+5.9
	Conservative hold		Swing
	Conservative hold		Swing
	Conservative gain from Green		Swing

Orchard Hill ^[10]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent	Christopher Leather	475	73.4	-2.0
	Liberal Democrats	Benjamin Symons	172	26.6	+2.0
Majority			303	46.8	-4.0
Turnout			647	44.6	-0.6
	Independent hold		Swing

Shebbear and Langtree ^[10]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	John Lewis	468	63.2	+10.8
	Liberal Democrats	John Watson	273	36.8	-10.8
Majority			195	26.3	+21.5
Turnout			741	49.2	-3.7
	Conservative hold		Swing

Tamarside ^[10]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent	Ken James	unopposed
	Independent hold		Swing

Three Moors ^[10]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Rosemary Lock	532	67.4	+4.8
	Green	Colin Jones	160	20.3	+20.3
	Liberal Democrats	Theresa Seligmann	97	12.3	-25.1
Majority			372	47.1	+21.9
Turnout			789	57.2	-7.6
	Conservative hold		Swing

Torrington (3 seats) ^[10]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Andrew Boyd	809
	Independent	Margaret Brown	792
	Liberal Democrats	Geoffrey Lee	641
	Independent	David Cox	480
	Labour	Heathcliffe Pettifer	312
	Liberal Democrats	Robert Jollands	209
	UKIP	Shirley Griffin	208
Turnout			3,451	38.8	+1.3
	Conservative hold		Swing
	Independent hold		Swing
	Liberal Democrats hold		Swing

Two Rivers ^[10]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Harold Martin	465	61.3
	Independent	Adrian Freeland	294	38.7
Majority			171	22.5
Turnout			759	55.0
	Conservative hold		Swing

Waldon ^[10]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent	Robert Hicks	382	54.2
	Independent	James Lowe	323	45.8
Majority			59	8.4
Turnout			705	51.9
	Independent hold		Swing

Westward Ho! ^[10]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent	Roger Tisdale	478	55.1	+7.4
	Conservative	Maria Bailey	390	44.9	+15.9
Majority			88	10.1	-8.5
Turnout			868	48.2	+6.7
	Independent hold		Swing

Winkleigh ^[10]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent	David Lausen	unopposed
	Independent hold		Swing

By-elections between 2011 and 2015

Shebbear and Langtree

A by-election was held in Shebbear and Langtree ward on 15 August 2013 after Conservative councillor John Lewis resigned from the council. ^[14] David Hurley held the seat for the Conservatives with a majority of 23 votes. ^[15]

Shebbear and Langtree by-election 15 August 2013 ^{[15] [16]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	David Hurley	240	47.2	-15.9
	UKIP	Penny Mills	217	42.7	+42.7
	Green	Colin Jones	41	8.1	+8.1
	Independent	Bob Wooton	10	2.0	+2.0
Majority			23	4.5	-21.8
Turnout			508	32.0	-17.2
	Conservative hold		Swing

Torrington

A by-election was held in Torrington ward after Liberal Democrat councillor Geoff Lee resigned from the council due to leaving the area. ^[17] The seat was gained for the Green party by Cathrine Simmons with a majority of 111 votes. ^[17]

Torrington by-election 5 September 2013 ^{[16] [18]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Green	Cathrine Simmons	292	35.3	+35.3
	UKIP	Robin Julian	181	21.9	+15.4
	Independent	David Cox	160	19.3	-5.1
	Independent	Adrian Freeland	106	12.8	-2.0
	Conservative	Philip Pester	89	10.7	-14.2
Majority			111	13.4
Turnout			828	19.3	-19.5
	Green gain from Liberal Democrats		Swing

Bideford East

A by-election was held in Bideford East ward on 20 March 2014 after the death of independent councillor Steve Clarke. ^[19] The seat was won by another independent Sam Robinson by a majority of 145 votes. ^[20]

Bideford East by-election 20 March 2014 ^{[16] [20]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent	Samuel Robinson	295	39.5	+22.1
	Conservative	Dermot McGeough	150	20.1	-3.7
	Labour	James Craigie	140	18.7	+7.4
	Independent	David Ratcliff	106	14.2	-3.2
	Liberal Democrats	Robert Wootton	39	5.2	-9.6
	Independent	Alan Smith	17	2.3	-15.1
Majority			145	19.4
Turnout			747	15.6	-19.3
	Independent hold		Swing

Kenwith

A by-election was held on 10 July 2014 for Kenwith ward after independent councillor Kathy Murdoch resigned from the council. ^[21] Kathy Murdoch had been elected as a Conservative but left the party to sit as an independent in June 2012. ^[22] The seat was gained for the Conservatives by Alison Boyle with a majority of 37 votes. ^[23]

Kenwith by-election 10 July 2014 ^[23]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Alison Boyle	136	29.8	-26.5
	UKIP	Derek Sargent	99	21.7	+21.7
	Independent	David Gale	98	21.5	+21.5
	Independent	Hugh Bone	69	15.1	+15.1
	Green	Simon Mathers	28	6.1	+6.1
	Labour	Geoff Hastings	26	5.7	-15.5
Majority			37	8.1	-25.7
Turnout			456	32.0	-19.3
	Conservative gain from Independent		Swing

References

1. "England council elections". BBC News Online . 10 May 2011. Retrieved 28 June 2014.
2. "Indies loss leaves Torridge hung". BBC News Online. 4 May 2007. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
3. "Three quit over 'stripogram' row". BBC News Online. 27 July 2007. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
4. "Lib Dem pair defect to back Conservative MP". The Herald . 26 April 2010. Archived from the original on 2 July 2014. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
5. Churchill, Laura (7 April 2011). "Third of tdc council not standing in may". North Devon Journal . NewsBank.
6. "Tributes follow death of Hartland councillor Bill Pillman". North Devon Journal . 30 October 2008. Archived from the original on 28 June 2014. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
7. "Pam Johns joins Torridge District Council". Express & Echo . 20 August 2009. Archived from the original on 28 June 2014. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
8. "Tories retain control of city council". Herald Express . NewsBank. 7 May 2011. p. 4.
9. Churchill, Laura (12 May 2011). "New faces, but still no party rule at torridge". North Devon Journal . NewsBank.
10. "Full District Council Elections Results 5 May 2011". Torridge District Council. Retrieved 28 June 2014.
11. Churchill, Laura (21 April 2011). "What lies ahead for 'improved' council?". North Devon Journal . NewsBank.
12. "Unitary and district council election results". Western Morning News . NewsBank. 7 May 2011.
13. Churchill, Laura (26 May 2011). "Tory to be leader of hung council". North Devon Journal . NewsBank.
14. "UKIP accuses rivals of "dirty tricks" in North Devon by-election". North Devon Journal . 15 August 2013. Archived from the original on 2 July 2014. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
15. "David Hurley elected as Shebbear and Langtree councillor". North Devon Journal . 20 August 2013. Archived from the original on 2 July 2014. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
16. "Local Authority Byelection Results". Archived from the original on 29 March 2010. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
17. Howells, Sarah (6 September 2013). "Green Party wins district council seat". North Devon Gazette . Retrieved 29 June 2014.
18. "Declaration of result of poll". Torridge District Council. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
19. Gussin, Tony (18 March 2014). "Bideford by-election for Steve Clarke's seats". North Devon Gazette . Retrieved 29 June 2014.
20. "Declaration of result of poll". Torridge District Council. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
21. Howells, Sarah (4 June 2014). "Torridge by-election as Kenwith councillor resigns". North Devon Gazette . Retrieved 29 June 2014.
22. "Tory councillors making Independent move". North Devon Journal . 14 June 2012. Archived from the original on 14 July 2014. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
23. "Declaration of result of poll". Torridge District Council. Retrieved 11 July 2014.