Sandwell Council election, 2011
Encyclopedia
The 2011 Sandwell Council election took place on 5 May 2011 to elect members of Sandwell
Metropolitan
Council in the West Midlands
, England
. One third of the council was up for election and the Labour
party stayed in overall control of the council.
After the election, the composition of the council was
and Liberal Democrats. Labour councillor
s defending seats included Elaine Costigan, who had defected from the Conservatives, and the deputy leader of the council Steve Eling.
The British National Party
only contested 2 seats, compared to 17 when these seats were last contested in 2007 and a full slate in 2010. A new Traditional Conservative Party, led by the former Sandwell Conservative leader Tony Ward, also put up candidates. Ward had left the Conservatives after being deposed as leader in 2010.
.
Sandwell
Sandwell is a metropolitan borough of the West Midlands with a population of around 289,100, and an area of . The borough is named after Sandwell Priory, and spans a densely populated part of both the Black Country, and the West Midlands conurbation, encompassing the urban towns of Blackheath,...
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 the West Midlands
West Midlands (county)
The West Midlands is a metropolitan county in western central England with a 2009 estimated population of 2,638,700. It came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972, formed from parts of Staffordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire. The...
, 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...
. One third of the council was up for election and 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.
After the election, the composition of the council was
- LabourLabour 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...
58 - ConservativeConservative 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...
9 - Liberal Democrat 3
- IndependentIndependent (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...
1 - Independent Socialist 1
Background
Labour defended 22 of the 24 seats which were contested in 2011, compared to 1 seat being defended each for 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...
and Liberal Democrats. Labour councillor
Councillor
A councillor or councilor is a member of a local government council, such as a city council.Often in the United States, the title is councilman or councilwoman.-United Kingdom:...
s defending seats included Elaine Costigan, who had defected from the Conservatives, and the deputy leader of the council Steve Eling.
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...
only contested 2 seats, compared to 17 when these seats were last contested in 2007 and a full slate in 2010. A new Traditional Conservative Party, led by the former Sandwell Conservative leader Tony Ward, also put up candidates. Ward had left the Conservatives after being deposed as leader in 2010.
Election result
The results saw Labour maintain a majority on the council after making a gain of one seat from the Liberal Democrats. This meant Labour took 23 of the 24 seats contested and therefore had 58 of the 72 councillors. The only seat not won by Labour was held by the Conservatives in Charlemont with Grove ValeCharlemont and Grove Vale
Charlemont and Grove Vale is a political ward in the Metropolitan Borough of Sandwell, in the English Midlands constituency of West Bromwich East....
.