Wakefield Council election, 2004
Encyclopedia
The 2004 Wakefield Council election took place on 10 June 2004 to elect members of City of Wakefield
Metropolitan
Council in West Yorkshire
, England
. The whole council was up for election with boundary changes since the last election in 2003
. The Labour
party stayed in overall control of the council.
stood a full slate of 63 candidates and were hopeful of making gains due to dissatisfaction among Labour supporters. The British National Party
stood 12 candidates in the election, a substantial increase on the 2 they had stood in the 2003 election
but not the 20 candidates the party had been hoping to stand. Other candidates included 19 Liberal Democrats, 18 independents
, 5 Socialist Alternative
, 3 from the United Kingdom Independence Party
and 1 Green Party
. All postal voting
in the election was expected to increase turnout
, which was seen by analysts as making the results difficult to predict.
being put down to the closure of a local swimming pool
. The Liberal Democrats held their 3 seats in Ossett
but neither they nor the British National Party made any gains. Overall voter turnout
was 39.6%.
Labour saw the results as not being as bad as they could have been given the losses the party was suffering nationally, which was put down to improved services and listening to local people. Meanwhile the Conservatives were disappointed that they had not made more gains.
City of Wakefield
The City of Wakefield is a local government district of West Yorkshire, England, with the status of a city and metropolitan borough. Wakefield is the district's administrative centre. The district includes the "Five Towns" of Normanton, Pontefract, Featherstone, Castleford and Knottingley. Other...
Metropolitan
Metropolitan borough
A metropolitan borough is a type of local government district in England, and is a subdivision of a metropolitan county. Created in 1974 by the Local Government Act 1972, metropolitan boroughs are defined in English law as metropolitan districts, however all of them have been granted or regranted...
Council in West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire is a metropolitan county within the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England with a population of 2.2 million. West Yorkshire came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972....
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. The whole council was up for election with boundary changes since the last election in 2003
Wakefield Council election, 2003
The 2003 Wakefield Council election took place on 1 May 2003 to elect members of City of Wakefield Metropolitan Council in West Yorkshire, England...
. The Labour
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...
party stayed in overall control of the council.
Campaign
Before the election Labour held 50 of the 63 seats on the council and this was seen as being an insummountable majority for the other parties. However the ConservativesConservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
stood a full slate of 63 candidates and were hopeful of making gains due to dissatisfaction among Labour supporters. The British National Party
British National Party
The British National Party is a British far-right political party formed as a splinter group from the National Front by John Tyndall in 1982...
stood 12 candidates in the election, a substantial increase on the 2 they had stood in the 2003 election
Wakefield Council election, 2003
The 2003 Wakefield Council election took place on 1 May 2003 to elect members of City of Wakefield Metropolitan Council in West Yorkshire, England...
but not the 20 candidates the party had been hoping to stand. Other candidates included 19 Liberal Democrats, 18 independents
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...
, 5 Socialist Alternative
Socialist Party (England and Wales)
The Socialist Party is a Trotskyist party active in England and Wales.It publishes the weekly newspaper The Socialist and the monthly magazine Socialism Today...
, 3 from the United Kingdom Independence Party
United Kingdom Independence Party
The United Kingdom Independence Party is a eurosceptic and right-wing populist political party in the United Kingdom. Whilst its primary goal is the UK's withdrawal from the European Union, the party has expanded beyond its single-issue image to develop a more comprehensive party platform.UKIP...
and 1 Green Party
Green Party of England and Wales
The Green Party of England and Wales is a political party in England and Wales which follows the traditions of Green politics and maintains a strong commitment to social progressivism. It is the largest Green party in the United Kingdom, containing within it various regional divisions including...
. All postal voting
Postal voting
Postal voting describes the method of voting in an election whereby ballot papers are distributed or returned by post to electors, in contrast to electors voting in person at a polling station or electronically via an electronic voting system....
in the election was expected to increase turnout
Voter turnout
Voter turnout is the percentage of eligible voters who cast a ballot in an election . After increasing for many decades, there has been a trend of decreasing voter turnout in most established democracies since the 1960s...
, which was seen by analysts as making the results difficult to predict.
Election result
The results saw Labour lose 7 seats but remained firmly in control of the council with 43 of the 63 seats. The Conservatives gained 4 and the independents 3, with the gains for the independents in FeatherstoneFeatherstone
Featherstone is a town and civil parish in the City of Wakefield in West Yorkshire, England. It lies south-west of Pontefract and has a population of 14,175.Featherstone railway station is on the Pontefract Line.-History:...
being put down to the closure of a local swimming pool
Swimming pool
A swimming pool, swimming bath, wading pool, or simply a pool, is a container filled with water intended for swimming or water-based recreation. There are many standard sizes; the largest is the Olympic-size swimming pool...
. The Liberal Democrats held their 3 seats in Ossett
Ossett
Ossett is a market town within the metropolitan borough of the City of Wakefield, in West Yorkshire, England. It is located on junction 40 of the M1 motorway, half-way between Dewsbury, to the west, and Wakefield, to the east. In the 2001 census, it was classified as part of the West Yorkshire...
but neither they nor the British National Party made any gains. Overall voter turnout
Voter turnout
Voter turnout is the percentage of eligible voters who cast a ballot in an election . After increasing for many decades, there has been a trend of decreasing voter turnout in most established democracies since the 1960s...
was 39.6%.
Labour saw the results as not being as bad as they could have been given the losses the party was suffering nationally, which was put down to improved services and listening to local people. Meanwhile the Conservatives were disappointed that they had not made more gains.