2008 Harlow District Council election
2008 UK local government election
The 2008 Harlow District Council election took place on 1 May 2008 to elect members of Harlow District Council in Essex, England. One third of the council was up for election and the Conservative Party gained overall control of the council from no overall control.
After the election, including the delayed election in Harlow Common, the composition of the council was:
Conservative 19
Liberal Democrats 8
Labour 6
Background
After the last election in 2007 both the Conservative and Labour parties had 12 seats, the Liberal Democrats had 8 and there was 1 independent councillor. However, in October 2007 the Conservatives gained a seat from Labour in Toddbrook to move to 13 seats, while Labour dropped to 11.
Before the election the council was run by a coalition between Labour and the Liberal Democrats, which had held power in Harlow since 2004. Among the councillors to stand down at the election were Liberal Democrat Su Lawton of Staple Tye ward and independent, former Conservative, John Paul Goddard of Sumners and Kingsmoor.
The election in Harlow Common ward was delayed until 12 June 2008, after the death of Labour councillor Gregory Peck in April 2008.
Election result
The Conservatives gained a majority on the council after gaining 5 seats on the day of the May election, while Labour lost 4 seats. The Conservatives took seats from Labour in Little Parndon and Hare Street and Toddbrook, from the Liberal Democrats in Netteswell and Staple Tye and from an independent in Sumners and Kingsmoor. This meant the Conservatives took 8 of the 10 seats contested and finished the day with 18 councillors.
Begin with the source’s own compact description: “2008 Harlow District Council election” is 2008 UK local government election. The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through Harlow, District and Council, not as a finished interpretation.
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