Derwentside District Council elections were generally held every four years between the council's creation in 1974 and its abolition in 2009. Derwentside was a non-metropolitan district in County Durham, England. On 1 April 2009 the council's functions passed to Durham County Council, which became a unitary authority.
The first election to the council was held in 1973, initially operating as a shadow authority before coming into its powers on 1 April 1974. Throughout the council's existence from 1974 to 2009, Labour held a majority of the seats on the council. [1]
| Party in control | Years | |
|---|---|---|
| Labour | 1974–2009 | |
The leaders of the council from 1991 until the council's abolition in 2009 were:
| Councillor | Party | From | To | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Joe Rhind [2] | Labour | 1991 | ||
| Alex Watson [3] [4] | Labour | 1991 | 2009 | |
| Election | Labour | Liberal Democrat [a] | Conservative | Derwentside Independents | Independent | Total | Notes | 
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1973 [5] | 45 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 55 | |
| 1976 [6] | 39 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 9 [b] | 55 | |
| 1979 [7] | 30 | 3 | 6 | 0 | 16 | 55 | New ward boundaries [8] | 
| 1983 [9] | 36 | 3 [c] | 4 | 0 | 12 | 55 | |
| 1987 [10] | 43 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 9 | 55 | |
| 1991 [11] | 38 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 15 | 55 | |
| 1995 [12] | 50 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 55 | District boundary changes took place but the number of seats remained the same [13] | 
| 1999 [14] | 47 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 55 | |
| 2003 [15] | 38 | 1 | 0 | 15 | 1 | 55 | New ward boundaries [16] | 
| 2007 [17] | 29 | 2 | 0 | 23 | 1 | 55 | |
Source: [18]
The following is an incomplete list of by-elections to Derwentside District Council.
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | 525 | 79.3 | |||
| Independent Labour | 137 | 20.7 | |||
| Majority | 388 | 58.6 | |||
| Turnout | 662 | 20.8 | |||
| Labour hold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | 414 | 83.6 | +8.8 | ||
| Liberal Democrats | 81 | 16.4 | +16.4 | ||
| Majority | 333 | 67.2 | |||
| Turnout | 495 | ||||
| Labour hold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | 549 | 74.7 | +5.0 | ||
| Independent Labour | 131 | 17.8 | +17.8 | ||
| Liberal Democrats | 55 | 7.5 | +7.5 | ||
| Majority | 418 | 66.9 | |||
| Turnout | 735 | ||||
| Labour hold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Independent | 468 | 53.7 | +7.4 | ||
| Labour | 404 | 46.3 | −7.4 | ||
| Majority | 64 | 7.4 | |||
| Turnout | 872 | 26.5 | |||
| Independent gain from Labour | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | 419 | 58.4 | +0.8 | ||
| Independent | 157 | 21.9 | −20.5 | ||
| Independent | 110 | 15.3 | +15.3 | ||
| Conservative | 32 | 4.5 | +4.5 | ||
| Majority | 262 | 36.5 | |||
| Turnout | 718 | 22.3 | |||
| Labour hold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | 416 | 70.3 | −0.8 | ||
| Liberal Democrats | 111 | 18.8 | +18.8 | ||
| Green | 65 | 11.0 | +11.0 | ||
| Majority | 305 | 51.5 | |||
| Turnout | 592 | 19.2 | |||
| Labour hold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | 240 | 54.4 | −13.8 | ||
| Independent | 201 | 45.6 | +13.8 | ||
| Majority | 39 | 8.8 | |||
| Turnout | 441 | 21.2 | |||
| Labour hold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | 319 | 63.0 | +5.4 | ||
| Independent | 93 | 18.4 | −24.0 | ||
| Liberal Democrats | 72 | 14.2 | +14.2 | ||
| Conservative | 22 | 4.3 | +4.3 | ||
| Majority | 226 | 44.6 | |||
| Turnout | 506 | 15.6 | |||
| Labour hold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Tom Clark | 469 | 32.5 | −0.3 | |
| Liberal Democrats | Keith English | 467 | 32.3 | +11.4 | |
| Independent | Donald Love | 404 | 28.0 | +0.0 | |
| Conservative | Peter Carr | 104 | 7.2 | −5.3 | |
| Majority | 2 | 0.2 | |||
| Turnout | 1,444 | 31.9 | |||
| Labour hold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Carl Marshall | 599 | 65.4 | +0.0 | |
| Liberal Democrats | David Rolfe | 199 | 21.7 | +1.1 | |
| BNP | Dean McAdam | 118 | 12.9 | +12.9 | |
| Majority | 400 | 43.7 | |||
| Turnout | 916 | 24.5 | |||
| Labour hold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Barbara Armstrong | 239 | 75.4 | +44.7 | |
| Conservative | Peter Carr | 78 | 24.6 | +24.6 | |
| Majority | 161 | 50.8 | |||
| Turnout | 317 | 25.7 | |||
| Labour gain from Independent | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Independent | Marion Wotherspoon | 297 | 82.3 | +8.3 | |
| Conservative | Michael Carr | 64 | 17.7 | +3.7 | |
| Majority | 233 | 64.6 | |||
| Turnout | 361 | 27.5 | |||
| Independent hold | Swing | ||||