Wakefield Council election, 2003
Encyclopedia
The 2003 Wakefield Council election took place on 1 May 2003 to elect members of City of Wakefield
Metropolitan
Council in West Yorkshire
, England
. One third of the council was up for election and the Labour
party kept overall control of the council.
After the election, the composition of the council was
South and Wakefield Rural, and 1 seat to the Liberal Democrats in Ossett
. Labour remained firmly in control, and while they were disappointed to lose 3 seats, the results were seen as being "not too bad" by the Labour council leader Peter Box. No other party won any seats, but the votes for the British National Party
concerned the other political leaders. Voter turnout
was lowest in South Elmsall
ward
at 18.6%.
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...
. 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 kept 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...
50 - 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...
7 - 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...
3
Election result
The results saw Labour lose 2 seats to the Conservatives in PontefractPontefract
Pontefract is an historic market town in West Yorkshire, England. Traditionally in the West Riding, near the A1 , the M62 motorway and Castleford. It is one of the five towns in the metropolitan borough of the City of Wakefield and has a population of 28,250...
South and Wakefield Rural, and 1 seat to the Liberal Democrats 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...
. Labour remained firmly in control, and while they were disappointed to lose 3 seats, the results were seen as being "not too bad" by the Labour council leader Peter Box. No other party won any seats, but the votes for 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...
concerned the other political leaders. 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 lowest in South Elmsall
South Elmsall
South Elmsall pronounced "south em-sull" is a small town and civil parish to the east of Hemsworth in the City of Wakefield in West Yorkshire, England. It is on the B6422 and B6474 ....
ward
Wards of the United Kingdom
A ward in the United Kingdom is an electoral district at sub-national level represented by one or more councillors. It is the primary unit of British administrative and electoral geography .-England:...
at 18.6%.