The 1998 West Oxfordshire District Council election took place on 7 May 1998 to elect members of West Oxfordshire District Council in Oxfordshire, England. One third of the council was up for election and the council stayed under no overall control.[1]
After the election, the composition of the council was
Before the election there were 15 independent councillors, the Liberal Democrats had 14 seats, Labour had 11 and the Conservatives had 9.[3] An alliance between the Liberal Democrats and the Labour party controlled the council with a majority of one seat.[3]
Among the councillors who stood down at the election was independent David Walker, who had quit the Conservatives in the early 1990s over the poll tax, as well as Patrick Madden, Peg McWilliam, Elizabeth Mortimer and Susan Swann.[3] 49 candidates stood for the 18 seats that were contested in 1998, including one candidate from the Green party, with the Liberal Democrats defending the most seats at eight.[3]
The Conservatives became the largest group on the council after gaining five seats.[4]
Party | Seats | Gains | Losses | Net gain/loss | Seats % | Votes % | Votes | +/− | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | 9 | 5 | 0 | +5 | 50.0 | 39.0 | 5,758 | ||
Liberal Democrats | 6 | 0 | 2 | -2 | 33.3 | 28.9 | 4,262 | ||
Independent | 2 | 0 | 2 | -2 | 11.1 | 6.4 | 949 | ||
Labour | 1 | 0 | 1 | -1 | 5.6 | 25.4 | 3,752 | ||
Green | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.2 | 27 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Independent | Robert Barrett | 295 | 45.9 | ||
Conservative | Rodney Rose | 240 | 37.3 | ||
Labour | Frances Ashworth | 108 | 16.8 | ||
Majority | 55 | 8.6 | |||
Turnout | 643 | 41.4 | |||
Independent hold | Swing |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Liberal Democrats | Brenda Smith | 576 | 74.7 | ||
Conservative | Martin Chapman | 153 | 19.8 | ||
Labour | Christine Ainsley-Cowlishaw | 42 | 5.4 | ||
Majority | 423 | 54.9 | |||
Turnout | 771 | 38.4 | |||
Liberal Democrats hold | Swing |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Independent | Jonathan Phillips | 480 | 83.2 | ||
Labour | Duncan Enright | 59 | 10.2 | ||
Liberal Democrats | Gareth Epps | 38 | 6.6 | ||
Majority | 421 | 73.0 | |||
Turnout | 577 | 28.9 | |||
Independent hold | Swing |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | William Goffe | 243 | 56.1 | ||
Liberal Democrats | Richard Noviss | 117 | 27.0 | ||
Labour | Matthew Deans | 73 | 16.9 | ||
Majority | 126 | 29.1 | |||
Turnout | 433 | 29.5 | |||
Conservative hold | Swing |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Louise Chapman | 306 | 58.4 | ||
Labour | Laurence Whitehead | 218 | 41.6 | ||
Majority | 88 | 16.8 | |||
Turnout | 524 | 43.5 | |||
Conservative hold | Swing |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Verena Hunt | 462 | 60.8 | ||
Labour | William Tumbridge | 204 | 26.8 | ||
Liberal Democrats | David Rossiter | 94 | 12.4 | ||
Majority | 258 | 33.9 | |||
Turnout | 760 | 25.7 | |||
Conservative gain from Independent | Swing |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Liberal Democrats | Christopher Davis | 383 | 49.5 | ||
Conservative | Mary Sanderson | 329 | 42.5 | ||
Labour | Alison Bettle | 35 | 4.5 | ||
Green | Ann Edmonds | 27 | 3.5 | ||
Majority | 54 | 7.0 | |||
Turnout | 774 | 46.8 | |||
Liberal Democrats hold | Swing |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Charles Marlow | 502 | 49.5 | ||
Labour | William Stevenson | 188 | 18.5 | ||
Independent | Keith Stone | 174 | 17.1 | ||
Liberal Democrats | Richard Harold | 151 | 14.9 | ||
Majority | 314 | 30.9 | |||
Turnout | 1,015 | 20.7 | |||
Conservative gain from Independent | Swing |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Paul Wesson | 331 | 49.3 | ||
Liberal Democrats | Peter Madden | 200 | 29.8 | ||
Labour | John Rowe | 141 | 21.0 | ||
Majority | 131 | 19.5 | |||
Turnout | 672 | 22.3 | |||
Conservative gain from Liberal Democrats | Swing |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Liberal Democrats | Christopher Tatton | 686 | 60.2 | ||
Labour | Reginald James | 252 | 22.1 | ||
Conservative | Brian Stacey | 201 | 17.6 | ||
Majority | 434 | 38.1 | |||
Turnout | 1,139 | 49.7 | |||
Liberal Democrats hold | Swing |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Labour | Evelyn Coles | 717 | 60.6 | ||
Conservative | Rosalind Stroud | 466 | 39.4 | ||
Majority | 251 | 21.2 | |||
Turnout | 1,183 | 26.6 | |||
Labour hold | Swing |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Angela Neale | 286 | 68.6 | ||
Labour | Sally Webster | 131 | 31.4 | ||
Majority | 155 | 37.2 | |||
Turnout | 417 | 28.5 | |||
Conservative hold | Swing |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Liberal Democrats | Harry Wyatt | 675 | 60.5 | ||
Conservative | Stephen Hayward | 239 | 21.4 | ||
Labour | Christopher Miles | 202 | 18.1 | ||
Majority | 436 | 39.1 | |||
Turnout | 1,116 | 30.5 | |||
Liberal Democrats hold | Swing |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Donald Seale | 307 | 74.3 | ||
Labour | Michael Enright | 106 | 25.7 | ||
Majority | 201 | 48.7 | |||
Turnout | 413 | 41.7 | |||
Conservative hold | Swing |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Liberal Democrats | David James | 527 | 43.4 | ||
Conservative | David Dawes | 522 | 43.0 | ||
Labour | Kim Simkin | 165 | 13.6 | ||
Majority | 5 | 0.4 | |||
Turnout | 1,214 | 37.5 | |||
Liberal Democrats hold | Swing |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | David Robertson | 218 | 36.2 | ||
Liberal Democrats | Brenda Churchill | 207 | 34.3 | ||
Labour | John Ryall | 178 | 29.5 | ||
Majority | 11 | 1.8 | |||
Turnout | 603 | 25.2 | |||
Conservative gain from Liberal Democrats | Swing |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Anthony Harvey | 686 | 54.1 | ||
Labour | Frederick Saxby | 582 | 45.9 | ||
Majority | 104 | 8.2 | |||
Turnout | 1,268 | 23.9 | |||
Conservative gain from Labour | Swing |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Liberal Democrats | Julian Cooper | 608 | 49.6 | ||
Labour | Ian Baxter | 351 | 28.6 | ||
Conservative | Sandra Rasch | 267 | 21.8 | ||
Majority | 257 | 21.0 | |||
Turnout | 1,226 | 49.7 | |||
Liberal Democrats hold | Swing |