2017 Scottish Borders Council election

Main article: 2017 Scottish local elections
2017 Scottish Borders Council election
4 May 2017 (2017-05-04)
All 34 seats to Scottish Borders Council
18 seats needed for a majority
  First party Second party
 
SNP
Leader Michelle Ballantyne Stuart Bell
Party Conservative SNP
Leader's seat Selkirkshire Tweeddale East
Seats before 10 9
Seats after 15 9
Seat change 5 0
Popular vote 19,355 9,954
Percentage 41.6% 21.4%
Swing 18.4% 0.7%
  Third party Fourth party
 
IND
LD
Leader David Parker Kris Chapman
Party Independent Liberal Democrats
Leader's seat Leaderdale and Melrose Tweeddale West
Seats before 7 6
Seats after 8 2
Seat change 1 4
Popular vote 11,050 3.818
Percentage 23.8% 8.2%
Swing 1.1% 8.3%
The 11 multi-member wards
Council Leader before election

David Parker
Independent

Council Leader after election

Shona Haslam
Conservative

2017 Elections to Scottish Borders Council were held on 4 May 2017, the same day as the other Scottish local government elections. The election used the 11 wards created as a result of the Local Governance (Scotland) Act 2004, with each ward electing three or four Councillors using the single transferable vote system, a form of proportional representation, with 34 councillors elected.

Following the 2012 election, the Scottish National Party formed a coalition with the support of the Independents and the Liberal Democrats. The Borders Party also supported this administration. This replaced the previous Conservative-Lib Dem-Independent coalition which existed from 2007-2012.

The council was the first to reveal its administration after the election, with the Conservative group forming a coalition with independents to rule the council. New Tweeddale East councillor Shona Haslam became its leader formally on 18 May. Outgoing independent leader, David Parker, become the council's new convener.[1]

Election results

Scottish Borders Local Election Result 2017
Party Seats Gains Losses Net gain/loss Seats % Votes % Votes +/−
  Conservative 15 5 0 +5 44.1 41.6 19,355 +18.4
  SNP 9 1 1 0 26.5 21.4 9,959 +0.7
  Independent 8 3 2 +1 23.5 23.8 11,050 +1.1
  Liberal Democrats 2 0 4 -4 5.9 8.2 3,818 -8.3
  Labour 0 - - - 0.0 2.8 1,283 -3.5
  Scottish Green 0 - - - 0.0 2.2 1,030 +1.8

Ward results

Tweeddale West

  • 2012: 1xLib Dem; 1xCon; 1xSNP
  • 2017: 1xLib Dem; 1xCon; 1xSNP
  • 2012-2017 Change: No Change
Tweeddale West - 3 seats
Party Candidate FPv% Count
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
SNP Heather Anderson 25.2% 1,160            
Conservative Eric Small 22.5% 1,036 1,036.2 1,040.2 1,097.2 1,115.3 1,123.3 1,928.3
Liberal Democrats Kris Chapman 16.7% 768 769.2 783.2 820.2 891.4 1,073.1 1,192.2
Conservative John Anderson 21.3% 984 984.2 987.2 1,003.2 1,018.2 1,030.2  
Scottish Green Catriona Hamilton 4.7% 218 221.3 238.4 262.6 332.8    
Labour Julia Reid 4.4% 201 201.5 205.5 224.6      
Independent Tommy Davidson 3.7% 170 170.6 190.6        
Independent Michael Needham 1.6% 73 73.1          
Electorate: 8,167 (Est.)   Valid: 4,610   Spoilt: 78   Quota: 1,153   Turnout: 4,688 (57.4%)  

Tweeddale East

  • 2012: 1xSNP; 1xCon; 1xLib Dem
  • 2017: 1xCon; 1xSNP; 1xIndependent
  • 2012-2017 Change: Independent gain one seat from Lib Dem
Tweeddale East
Party Candidate FPv% Count
1 2 3 4 5
Conservative Shona Haslam 37.6% 1,804        
SNP Stuart Bell (incumbent) 20% 960 971.7 1,442.7    
Independent Robin Tatler 16.5% 793 970.4 1,013.7 1,093.4 1,701.3
Liberal Democrats Amanda Kubie 13.6% 650 881.7 931.1 1,003.5  
SNP Simon Ritchie 12.2% 585 590.7      
Electorate: 8,640 (Est.)   Valid: 4,792   Spoilt: 46   Quota: 1,199   Turnout: 4,838 (56%)  

Galashiels and District

  • 2012: 2xSNP; 1xBP; 1xIndependent
  • 2017: 1xSNP; 1xCon; 2xIndependent
  • 2012-2017 Change: Independent and Con gain one seat from SNP and BP
Galashiels and District - 4 seats
Party Candidate FPv% Count
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Conservative Euan Jardine 28.5% 1,292            
SNP Andy Anderson 20% 907            
Independent Sandy Aitchison (incumbent) 11.9% 539 612.9 640.3 732.4 916.2    
Independent Harry Scott 10.1% 460 517.8 532.4 592.4 753.1 757 988.3
SNP John Mitchell (incumbent) 11.5% 523 530.4 558.9 597.7 647.3    
Independent Bill White (incumbent) 8.7% 396 441.3 462.1 522      
Liberal Democrats Caledonia Bhatia 5.5% 249 316 369.2        
Labour David Sharp 3.7% 167 188.5          
Electorate: 10,980 (Est.)   Valid: 4,533   Spoilt: 66   Quota: 907   Turnout: 4,599 (41.9%)  

Selkirkshire

  • 2012: 1xCon; 1xLib Dem; 1xIndependent
  • 2017: 1xCon; 1xSNP; 1xIndependent
  • 2012-2017 Change: SNP gain one seat from Lib Dem
Selkirkshire - 3 seats[2]
Party Candidate FPv% Count
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Conservative Michelle Ballantyne† (incumbent) 27% 1,081                
SNP Elaine Thornton-Nicol 22.2% 888 889 941 956 983 1,031      
Independent Gordon Edgar (incumbent) 12.8% 514 524 531 569 607 646 652 847 1,083
Conservative Trevor Adams 15.1% 606 661 663 675 694 713 713 763  
Independent Kenneth Gunn 9.8% 392 396 403 417 429 456 464    
Labour Scott Redpath 3.7% 147 148 165 176 219        
Liberal Democrats Nancy Norman 3.3% 134 136 163 171          
Independent David Black 3.1% 123 124 125            
Scottish Green Barbra Harvie 3% 122 123              
Electorate: 7,752 (Est.)   Valid: 4,007   Spoilt: 86   Quota: 1,002   Turnout: 4,093 (52.8%)  

Leaderdale and Melrose

  • 2012: 1xIndependent; 1xBP; 1xSNP
  • 2017: 1xIndependent; 1xCon; 1xSNP
  • 2012-2017 Change: Con gain one seat from BP
Leaderdale and Melrose - 3 seats
Party Candidate FPv% Count
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Independent David Parker (incumbent) 25.2% 1,149            
Conservative Tom Miers 20.5% 934 934.9 950.9 1,014 1,476.5    
SNP Kevin Drum†† 17.8% 811 812.4 832.5 903.7 910.8 915.5 1,105.3
Independent Iain Gillespie (incumbent) 11.2% 510 513.3 585.7 720.2 744.4 871.1  
Conservative Diana Findlay 11.5% 523 523.6 543.7 529.8      
Liberal Democrats John Paton-Day 9.4% 426 427.5 473.6        
Independent Rebecca Fraser 4.4% 202 202.7          
Electorate: 8,673 (Est.)   Valid: 4,555   Spoilt: 78   Quota: 1,139   Turnout: 4,633 (53.4%)  

Mid Berwickshire

  • 2012: 1xSNP; 1xCon; 1xLib Dem
  • 2017: 2xCon; 1xSNP
  • 2012-2017 Change: Con gain one seat from Lib Dem
Mid Berwickshire - 3 seats
Party Candidate FPv% Count
1 2 3 4 5 6
Conservative John Greenwell (incumbent) 35.1% 1,592          
Conservative Mark Rowley 24.1% 1,096 1,434.3        
SNP Donald Moffat (incumbent) 21.2% 962 983.2 995.3 1,022.9 1,124.7 1,435.7
Liberal Democrats Frances Renton (incumbent) 11.9% 539 576.5 665 728.6 816.2  
Scottish Green Pauline Stewart 3.9% 177 181 201 249    
Labour David Smith 3.9% 175 180.4 199.8      
Electorate: 8,494 (Est.)   Valid: 4,541   Spoilt: 96   Quota: 1,136   Turnout: 4,637 (54.6%)  

East Berwickshire

  • 2012: 1 x Independent, 1 x Conservative, 1 x SNP
  • 2017: 2 x Conservative, 1 x SNP
  • 2012-2017 Change: 1 x Conservative gain from Independent
East Berwickshire - 3 seats[3]
Party Candidate FPv% Count
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Conservative Jim Fullarton (incumbent) 35.6% 1,505            
Conservative Carol Hamilton 23.1% 979 1,357          
SNP Helen Laing 19.6% 831 835 841 893 932 1,001 1,203
Liberal Democrats Danny Robertson 6.5% 276 296 352 398 475 627  
Labour Eddy Coulson 7.1% 301 309 328 359 408    
Independent Michael Clift 4.2% 178 185 233 259      
Scottish Green Kate Duncan 3.8% 162 166 178        
Electorate: TBC   Valid: 4,232   Spoilt: 66   Quota: 1,059   Turnout: 49.0%  

Kelso and District

  • 2012: 2 x Conservative, 1 x Liberal Democrat
  • 2017: 2 x Conservative, 1 x Liberal Democrat
  • 2012-2017 Change: No Change
Kelso and District - 3 seats[4]
Party Candidate FPv% Count
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Conservative Tom Weatherston (incumbent) 28% 1,212              
Conservative Simon Mountford (incumbent) 25% 1,083              
Liberal Democrats Euan Robson 14.7% 636 675 675 700 741 788 955 1,370
SNP Alison Lamond 16.5% 713 715 715 731 749 809 850  
Independent Ian Aitchison 7.7% 333 362 362 389 401 424    
Scottish Green Colin Shaughnessy 3% 129 133 133 144 164      
Labour Sally Prentice 2.7% 116 119 119 124        
Independent Colin McGrath 2.4% 104 114 114          
Electorate: TBC   Valid: 4,326   Spoilt: 89   Quota: 1,082   Turnout: 53.1%  

Jedburgh and District

  • 2012: 1 x SNP, 1 x Conservative, 1 x Independent
  • 2017: 2 x Conservative, 1 x SNP
  • 2012-2017 Change: 1 x Conservative from Independent
Jedburgh and District - 3 seats[5]
Party Candidate FPv% Count
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Conservative Sandy Scott (incumbent) 28.5% 1,094            
Conservative Scott Hamilton 26.8% 1,026            
SNP Jim Brown (incumbent) 19.7% 755 759 760 768 795 877 1,150
Independent Rory Stewart (incumbent) 15.6% 600 633 657 708 747 801  
Scottish Green Charles Strang 4.5% 171 179 183 185 218    
Labour Kenryck Lloyd-Jones 3.1% 119 128 133 135      
Independent Harvey Oliver 1.8% 70 82 90        
Electorate: TBC   Valid: 3,835   Spoilt: 56   Quota: 959   Turnout: 54.4%  

Hawick and Denholm

  • 2012: 1 x Independent, 1 x Conservative, 1 x SNP
  • 2017: 1 x Independent, 1 x Conservative, 1 x SNP
  • 2012-2017 Change: No Change
Hawick and Denholm - 3 seats[6]
Party Candidate FPv% Count
1 2 3 4 5 6
Independent Stuart Marshall (incumbent) 63.3% 2,283          
Conservative Neil Richards 16.5% 596 952        
SNP Clair Ramage 13.3% 478 696 697 738 764 905
Liberal Democrats Ian Turnbull 3.9% 140 393 410 432 471  
Labour David Byrne 1.6% 57 98 101 114    
Scottish Green Kevin Ferguson 1.4% 51 93 95      
Electorate: TBC   Valid: 3,605   Spoilt: 26   Quota: 902   Turnout: 50.9%  

Hawick and Hermitage

  • 2012: 1 x Independent, 1 x Liberal Democrat, 1 x Conservative
  • 2017: 2 x Independent, 1 x Conservative
  • 2012-2017 Change: 1 x Independent gain from Liberal Democrats
Hawick and Hermitage - 3 seats[7]
Party Candidate FPv% Count
1 2
Independent Watson McAteer * 43.2% 1,496  
Conservative George Turnbull (incumbent) 26.4% 912  
Independent Davie Paterson (incumbent) 19.2% 665 936
SNP Iain Whyte 11.2% 386 482
Electorate: TBC   Valid: 3,459   Spoilt: 53   Quota: 865   Turnout: 50.3%  
  • Sitting Councillor from Hawick and Denholm Ward.

Changes since 2017

  • † On 4 December 2017, Selkirkshire Conservative Cllr Michelle Ballantyne resigned her seat upon her election to the Scottish Parliament.[8] A by-election was held on 22 February 2018 and the seat was won by Independent candidate, Caroline Penman.
  • †† On 9 March 2020, it was announced that Leaderdale and Melrose SNP Cllr Kevin Drum had died over the weekend.[9] A by-election took place a year later in March 2021 and was won by the Scottish Conservatives.

By-elections since 2017

Selkirkshire By-election (22 February 2018)[10]
Party Candidate FPv% Count
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Conservative Trevor Adams 39.9 1,380 1,251 1,262 1,276 1,307 1,342  
Independent Caroline Penman 29.7 1,040 1,049 1,080 1,125 1,231 1,522 2,028
SNP John Mitchell 19.8 691 717 729 758 797    
Independent Kenneth Gunn 6.3 219 226 238 249      
Labour Scott Redpath 3.8 134 144 158        
Liberal Democrats Jack Clark 2.7 95 103          
Scottish Green Barbra Harvie 2.0 70            
Valid: 3,496   Spoilt: 44   Quota: 1,749   Turnout: 3,536 (45.1%)  
Leaderdale and Melrose By-election (11 March 2021)[11]
Party Candidate FPv% Count
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Conservative Jenny Linehan 39.9 1,380 1,389 1,399 1,406 1,451 1,653 1,969
SNP John Paton-Day 30.2 1,042 1,051 1,069 1,120 1,156 1,297  
Liberal Democrats Jonny Adamson 15.6 538 542 566 615 682    
Independent Mary Douglas 4.6 159 177 194 224      
Scottish Green Michael Needham 4.4 152 155 175        
Labour Scott Redpath 3.3 115 120          
Independent Karen Wilks 2.0 69            
Electorate: TBC   Quota: 1,728   Turnout: (38.2%)  

References

  1. ^ "Conservatives and independents to run Scottish Borders Council". 9 May 2017. Retrieved 9 May 2017.
  2. ^ Council, Scottish Borders. "Ward 4 Selkirkshire results information | Scottish Borders Council". www.scotborders.gov.uk.
  3. ^ Council, Scottish Borders. "Ward 7 East Berwickshire results information | Scottish Borders Council". www.scotborders.gov.uk.
  4. ^ Council, Scottish Borders. "Ward 8 Kelso and District results information | Scottish Borders Council". www.scotborders.gov.uk.
  5. ^ Council, Scottish Borders. "Ward 9 Jedburgh and District results information | Scottish Borders Council". www.scotborders.gov.uk.
  6. ^ Council, Scottish Borders. "Ward 10 Hawick and Denholm results information | Scottish Borders Council". www.scotborders.gov.uk.
  7. ^ Council, Scottish Borders. "Ward 11 Hawick and Hermitage results information | Scottish Borders Council". www.scotborders.gov.uk.
  8. ^ "Michelle Ballantyne resigns as Selkirkshire councillor". Border Telegraph.
  9. ^ "Councillor's death a 'great shock' to colleagues". 9 March 2020 – via www.bbc.co.uk.
  10. ^ Council, Scottish Borders. "Local government by-election results". www.scotborders.gov.uk.
  11. ^ Council, Scottish Borders. "Local government by-election results". www.scotborders.gov.uk.
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