The Highland Council election, 2007
Encyclopedia
Elections to the Highland Council were held on 3 May 2007; the same day as elections to the Scottish Parliament
and to the 31 other councils
in Scotland. Previous elections to the Council had been conducted using the single member plurality system (a.k.a 'First Past the Post'). Changes implemented by the Local Governance (Scotland) Act 2004 meant that future local government elections were to be conducted using the Single Transferable Vote
, beginning with those in 2007. The 80 Highland Councillors were now to be elected from 22 wards, returning either three or four members.
The election saw Independent
councillors retain their plurality, despite losing a significant number of members, and the Liberal Democrats
and Scottish National Party
both increasing their representation, with that of the Labour Party
decreasing. The Independent and SNP groups subsequently went into coalition to form the Administration of the Council.
Scottish Parliament election, 2007
The 2007 Scottish Parliament election was held on Thursday 3 May 2007 to elect members to the Scottish Parliament. It was the third general election to the devolved Scottish Parliament since it was created in 1999...
and to the 31 other councils
Scottish local elections, 2007
The Scottish local elections, 2007 were held on 3 May 2007, the same day as Scottish Parliament elections and local elections in parts of England...
in Scotland. Previous elections to the Council had been conducted using the single member plurality system (a.k.a 'First Past the Post'). Changes implemented by the Local Governance (Scotland) Act 2004 meant that future local government elections were to be conducted using the Single Transferable Vote
Single transferable vote
The single transferable vote is a voting system designed to achieve proportional representation through preferential voting. Under STV, an elector's vote is initially allocated to his or her most preferred candidate, and then, after candidates have been either elected or eliminated, any surplus or...
, beginning with those in 2007. The 80 Highland Councillors were now to be elected from 22 wards, returning either three or four members.
The election saw Independent
Independent (politician)
In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do...
councillors retain their plurality, despite losing a significant number of members, and the Liberal Democrats
Liberal Democrats
The Liberal Democrats are a social liberal political party in the United Kingdom which supports constitutional and electoral reform, progressive taxation, wealth taxation, human rights laws, cultural liberalism, banking reform and civil liberties .The party was formed in 1988 by a merger of the...
and Scottish National Party
Scottish National Party
The Scottish National Party is a social-democratic political party in Scotland which campaigns for Scottish independence from the United Kingdom....
both increasing their representation, with that of the Labour Party
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
decreasing. The Independent and SNP groups subsequently went into coalition to form the Administration of the Council.
Post-election changes
- On May 6, 2007, Badenoch and Strathspey Cllr Gregor Rimell became a Liberal Democrat and ceased to be an Independent
- On October 26, 2007, Tain and Easter Ross Cllr Richard Durham became an Independent after leaving the Liberal Democrats
- On December 12, 2007, Tain and Easter Ross Cllr Alan Torrance became a member of the Scottish National Party and ceased to be an Independent
- On April 3, 2008, Landward Caithness Cllr David Bremner became an Independent, separate from the Administration, after being expelled from the Scottish National Party