Two council by-elections yesterday: LibDem hold in Cottenham (South Cambridgeshire)Con gain from SNP in Dunblane & Bridge of Allan (Stirling) LibDems hung on in Cottenham, seeing a big decline in their margin of victory over the Cons. Possible factors include Labour reappearing on the candidate list, and the Cons making much of traffic restrictions in… Continue reading

There were three council by-elections on Thursday Labour held in Tottenham Hale (Haringey) and Heston West (Hounslow). The Liberal Democrats gained a seat from the SNP in Corstorphine/Murrayfield (Edinburgh). The LibDems did well to come second in both of the Labour holds, from a long way back in 3rd in Tottenham Hale behind the Greens, and having not… Continue reading

Two by elections yesterday, in Wrexham and Aberdeen. In Wales, Plaid Cymru held off a challenge from Labour and retained their seat. In Scotland, SNP failed to match them: although they led on first preferences, there was a significant swing to Labour, and Labour gained the seat (from Con) at stage 8. Remember that Scotland… Continue reading

The Aim:To create a mathematically calculated index to assess each major party’s performance in the week’s council by-elections; taking out subjective views, party spin, and expectations management; and relying only on information that is consistently available for all by elections. Nearly every week, there are a handful of by-elections to vacant council seats. Some seats… Continue reading