2024 Colchester City Council election

Last updated
2024 Colchester City Council election
Flag of Essex.svg
  2023 2 May 2024 (2024-05-02)2026 

18 out of 51 seats to Colchester City Council
26 seats needed for a majority
Turnout29.9% (Decrease2.svg1.1%)
 First partySecond party
  No image wide.svg No image wide.svg
LeaderPaul DundasMartin Goss
Party Conservative Liberal Democrats
Last election19 seats, 30.5%15 seats, 30.3%
Seats before1916
Seats won74
Seats after1915
Seat changeSteady2.svgDecrease2.svg 1
Popular vote13,0809,972
Percentage30.0%22.9%
SwingDecrease2.svg 0.5%Decrease2.svg 7.4%

 Third partyFourth party
  No image wide.svg No image wide.svg
LeaderJulie YoungMark Goacher
Party Labour Green
Last election15 seats, 24.5%2 seats, 10.2%
Seats before132
Seats won61
Seats after143
Seat changeSteady2.svgIncrease2.svg 1
Popular vote14,1804,447
Percentage32.5%10.2%
SwingIncrease2.svg 8.0%Steady2.svg 0.0%

Colchester UK ward map 2024.svg
Winner of each seat at the 2024 Colchester City Council election

Leader before election

David King
Liberal Democrats
No overall control

Leader after election

David King
Liberal Democrats
No overall control

The 2024 Colchester City Council election took place on 2 May 2024 alongside other local elections across England. [1] Eighteen members of the council were elected, one from each of the wards, with an additional by-election in Greenstead ward. [2] [3]

Contents

The council was under no overall control prior to the election. The Conservatives were the largest party, but the council was being run by a Liberal Democrat minority administration with informal support from Labour and the Green Party. Only two seats changed party at the election, and after the election the Liberal Democrats continued to form a minority administration, with Labour and the Greens lending their support on a case-by-case basis. [4]

Background

This set of seats were last up for election at the 2021 election. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the City Council election (then Borough) scheduled for 2020 was postponed one year to 2021. This resulted in the terms of councillors elected at the 2021 election being truncated to 3-years rather than the usual 4-years.

In addition to the seventeen regular members up for election, there will be a by-election in Greenstead ward due to the resignation of Cllr Molly Bloomfield.

Pre-Election Composition
19
16
14
2
PartySeats
Conservative Party19
Liberal Democrats16
Labour Party14
Green Party2

Summary

Overview

At the election, Labour made a significant advance in vote share, coming first in the popular vote (for the first time since the inaugural 1973 election) and winning the marginal ward of Shrub End from the Liberal Democrats, and making large gains in vote share across the city. In contrast, the Liberal Democrats lost a large portion of their vote when compared to the 2023 election, failing to win their top targets of Stanway and Prettygate; they did, however, retain the marginal seat of Highwoods against Labour.

For the Conservativates, it was another disappointing result, losing the popular vote to Labour and seeing their vote share decline or stagnate in key wards such as Castle and Highwoods. They did, however, retain their seat in Stanway against a strong challenge from the Liberal Democrats. The Green Party remained static in the popular vote, but managed to unseat their former leader (who defected to Labour in 2022) in Castle ward, bringing their total number of seats to 3.

Candidates by party

Conservative Party (18/18)





Labour Party (18/18)





Green Party (18/18)





Liberal Democrats (17/18)





Independent (3/18)





Reform UK (2/18)





Election result

2024 Colchester City Council election
PartyThis electionFull councilThis election
SeatsNetSeats %OtherTotalTotal %VotesVotes %+/−
  Conservative 7Steady2.svg38.9121937.313,08030.0–0.5
  Liberal Democrats 4Decrease2.svg 122.2111529.49,97222.9–7.4
  Labour 6Steady2.svg33.381427.514,18032.5+8.0
  Green 1Increase2.svg 15.6235.94,44710.2±0.0
  Independent 0Steady2.svg0.0000.01,1582.7–0.5
  Reform UK 0Steady2.svg0.0000.07661.8+0.5

Incumbents

WardIncumbent CouncillorPartyRe-standing
BerechurchDave Harris Labour Co-op Yes
CastleSteph Nissen [lower-alpha 1] Labour Yes
GreensteadJulie Young Labour Co-op Yes
HighwoodsSimon Appleton [lower-alpha 2] Liberal Democrats Yes
Lexden & BraiswickDennis Willetts Conservative Yes
Marks Tey & LayerKevin Bentley Conservative Yes
Mersea & PyefleetJohn Jowers Conservative No
Mile EndMartin Goss Liberal Democrats Yes
New Town & Christ Church Pam Cox Labour Yes
Old Heath & The HytheMike Lilley Labour Co-op Yes
PrettygateSue Lissimore Conservative Yes
Rural NorthDarius Laws Conservative Yes
Shrub EndLyn Barton Liberal Democrats No
St. Anne's & St. John'sMike Hogg Liberal Democrats No
StanwayJeremy Hagon Conservative Yes
TiptreeRoger Mannion Conservative Yes
WivenhoeMichelle Burrows Liberal Democrats No

Ward results

The Statement of Persons Nominated details the candidates standing in each ward. It was released on 5 April 2023 following the close of nominations. [5] Incumbents are marked with an asterisk (*).

Berechurch

Berechurch ward Berechurch ward.png
Berechurch ward
Berechurch
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Labour Co-op Dave Harris* 1,536 79.5 +13.4
Conservative Bevan Waghorn20710.7–4.9
Liberal Democrats Karen Chaplin965.0–4.2
Green John Clifton944.9–0.4
Majority1,32968.8+18.3
Turnout 1,93326.5+1.1
Registered electors 7,309
Labour Co-op hold Swing Increase2.svg9.2

Castle

Castle ward Castle ward.png
Castle ward
Castle
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Green Kemal Çufoğlu 1,247 44.5 –5.9
Labour Steph Nissen*82629.4+11.4
Conservative Ryan Smith52318.6–5.4
Liberal Democrats Martin Gillingham2097.5–0.1
Majority42115.1–11.3
Turnout 2,80533.7+0.3
Registered electors 8,329
Green gain from Labour Swing Decrease2.svg8.7

Greenstead

Greenstead ward Greenstead ward.png
Greenstead ward
Greenstead (2 seats due to by-election)
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Labour Co-op Julie Young* 1,159 63.5 +4.2
Labour Elizabeth Alake-Akinyemi 1,150 63.0 +3.7
Conservative Rowan Knight35819.6+0.9
Conservative Ronnie Achille33518.4–0.3
Green Lisa Cross25814.1+7.6
Liberal Democrats Jenny Stevens22512.3+1.8
Green Zac Roulston1659.0+2.5
Turnout 1,82517.6+0.6
Registered electors 10,350
Labour Co-op hold
Labour hold

Highwoods

Highwoods ward Highwoods ward.png
Highwoods ward
Highwoods
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Liberal Democrats Simon Appleton* 947 45.0 –1.5
Labour Gary Braddy71734.1+1.4
Conservative Christopher Hayter34516.4–0.6
Green Antony Greenwood964.6+0.8
Majority23010.9–2.9
Turnout 2,10528.7–1.5
Registered electors 7,325
Liberal Democrats hold Swing Decrease2.svg1.5

Lexden & Braiswick

Lexden & Braiswick ward Lexden & Braiswick ward.png
Lexden & Braiswick ward
Lexden & Braiswick
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Conservative Dennis Willetts 1,420 55.6 –2.5
Labour Sandy Armitage55621.8+7.7
Liberal Democrats Thomas Stevenson33113.0–5.2
Green Roger Bamforth2489.7+0.1
Majority86433.8–6.1
Turnout 2,55534.4–2.4
Registered electors 7,428
Conservative hold Swing Decrease2.svg5.1

Marks Tey & Layer

Marks Tey & Layer ward Marks Tey & Layer ward.png
Marks Tey & Layer ward
Marks Tey & Layer
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Conservative Kevin Bentley* 1,176 53.2 –1.6
Labour John Spademan57325.9+4.3
Green Amy Sheridan24611.1–0.7
Liberal Democrats Mark Hull2149.7–2.2
Majority60327.3–5.9
Turnout 2,20926.6–2.7
Registered electors 8,297
Conservative hold Swing Decrease2.svg3.0

Mersea & Pyefleet

Mersea & Pyefleet ward Mersea.png
Mersea & Pyefleet ward
Mersea & Pyefleet
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Conservative Martin Parsons 1,081 36.5 –3.6
Independent John Akker92831.2–0.8
Reform UK Sophie Preston-Hall35512.0+5.8
Labour Natalie Eldred33611.3+1.4
Green Libby Kirkby-Taylor1244.8–0.5
Liberal Democrats John Knight1244.2–2.3
Majority1535.3+2.8
Turnout 2,96237.0–1.9
Registered electors 8,013
Conservative hold Swing Decrease2.svg1.6

Mile End

Mile End ward Mile End ward.png
Mile End ward
Mile End
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Liberal Democrats Martin Goss* 1,889 68.2 +7.0
Labour Co-op Pauline Bacon44516.1+2.8
Conservative Phoebe Butcher30711.1–5.3
Green Amanda Kirke1294.7–4.5
Majority1,44452.1+7.3
Turnout 2,77028.1+0.5
Registered electors 9,873
Liberal Democrats hold Swing Increase2.svg2.1

New Town & Christ Church

New Town & Christ Church ward New Town & Christ Church ward.png
New Town & Christ Church ward
New Town & Christ Church
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Labour Pam Cox* 1,639 57.3 +15.4
Conservative Christopher Piggott46816.4+3.5
Liberal Democrats Alan Mathias35012.2–19.7
Green Sara Ruth2759.6+2.9
Independent Ian Partridge1284.5–2.2
Majority1,17140.9+30.9
Turnout 2,86029.6–2.6
Registered electors 9,675
Labour hold Swing Increase2.svg6.0

Old Heath & The Hythe

Old Heath & The Hythe ward Old Heath & The Hythe ward.png
Old Heath & The Hythe ward
Old Heath & The Hythe
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Labour Co-op Mike Lilley* 1,291 58.9 –0.4
Conservative Richard Martin35916.4+0.7
Green Andrew Canessa29913.6+5.8
Liberal Democrats Jakub Makowski1376.3–3.9
Independent Jeffrey Drew1064.8–2.3
Majority93242.5–1.1
Turnout 2,19225.5–1.3
Registered electors 8,591
Labour Co-op hold Swing Decrease2.svg0.6

Prettygate

Prettygate ward Prettygate ward.png
Prettygate ward
Prettygate
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Conservative Sue Lissimore* 1,642 50.7 +8.7
Liberal Democrats John Loxley1,03632.0–9.3
Labour Chris Coates42013.0+1.2
Green Natalie Edgoose1404.3–0.6
Majority60618.7+18.0
Turnout 3,23841.7+1.8
Registered electors 7,765
Conservative hold Swing Increase2.svg9.0

Rural North

Rural North ward Rural North ward.png
Rural North ward
Rural North
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Conservative Darius Laws* 1,618 57.5 +1.6
Labour Barbara Nichols51318.2+4.3
Liberal Democrats Karen Maxwell34912.4–4.1
Green John Burgess33311.8–1.9
Majority1,10539.3–0.1
Turnout 2,81332.7–1.7
Registered electors 8,594
Conservative hold Swing Decrease2.svg1.4

Shrub End

Shrub End ward Shrub End ward.png
Shrub End ward
Shrub End
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Labour Claire Osborne 792 37.9 +4.0
Liberal Democrats Mark Arnold62529.9–9.4
Conservative Angela Linghorn-Baker54125.9+4.5
Green Bob Brannan1316.3+0.8
Majority1678.0N/A
Turnout 2,08925.2–0.8
Registered electors 8,288
Labour gain from Liberal Democrats Swing Increase2.svg6.7

St. Anne's & St. John's

St. Anne's & St. John's ward St. Anne's & St. John's ward.png
St. Anne's & St. John's ward
St. Anne's & St. John's
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Liberal Democrats Catherine Spindler 1,071 45.1 –8.5
Conservative Simon Crow67428.4+1.8
Labour Brian Omiyi47620.0+6.5
Green Sabestian Dwyer1556.5+0.2
Majority39716.7–10.3
Turnout 2,37629.1–2.5
Registered electors 8,167
Liberal Democrats hold Swing Decrease2.svg5.2

Stanway

Stanway ward Stanway ward.png
Stanway ward
Stanway
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Conservative Jeremy Hagon* 847 40.1 +10.1
Liberal Democrats Chantelle-Louise Whyborn80938.3–20.7
Labour William Hayton30014.2+6.5
Green Clare Smee1557.3+4.0
Majority381.8N/A
Turnout 2,11128.9–4.5
Registered electors 7,309
Conservative hold Swing Increase2.svg15.4

Tiptree

Tiptree ward Tiptree.png
Tiptree ward
Tiptree
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Conservative Roger Mannion* 971 44.5 –10.0
Labour Co-op Luke Hayes52524.1+6.9
Reform UK Ashley Girling41118.8+10.2
Liberal Democrats Sue Waite1396.4–4.3
Green Clare Burgess1356.2–2.9
Majority44620.4–16.9
Turnout 2,18129.0–3.8
Registered electors 7,524
Conservative hold Swing Decrease2.svg6.5

Wivenhoe

Wivenhoe ward Wivenhoe.png
Wivenhoe ward
Wivenhoe
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Liberal Democrats Sean Kelly 1,421 52.1 –21.5
Labour Philip Long92633.9+21.2
Conservative Andrew Higginson2087.6+3.3
Green Berthold Lausen1756.4–3.0
Majority49518.2–42.7
Turnout 2,73040.9+2.3
Registered electors 6,673
Liberal Democrats hold Swing Decrease2.svg21.4

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References

  1. "Election timetables for scheduled local government elections in England". The Electoral Commission. Retrieved 28 October 2022.
  2. "Notice of Election" (PDF). Colchester City Council. 22 March 2024. Retrieved 23 March 2024.
  3. "Colchester City Council upcoming elections". Colchester Council. 2023-12-30. Archived from the original on 2023-12-30. Retrieved 2023-12-30.
  4. Hensel, Natalie (16 May 2024). "Colchester Council confirms new administration and cabinet". Daily Gazette and Essex County Standard. Retrieved 4 July 2024.
  5. "Statement of Persons Nominated" (PDF). Colchester City Council. 5 April 2024. Retrieved 5 April 2024.

Notes

  1. Originally elected as a Green, but defected to Labour in December 2022
  2. Elected at the 2023 Highwoods by-election