2021 Scottish Parliament election

General Election held in Scotland on 6 May 2021

2021 Scottish Parliament election

* * *

| ← 2016 | 6 May 2021 (2021-05-06) | Next →

|
|

← outgoing members

elected members →

* * *

All 129 seats to the Scottish Parliament
65 seats needed for a majority
Opinion polls
Turnout| Constituency – 63.5% 7.7pp
Regional – 63.5% 7.7pp
|   | First party  | Second party  | Third party

|
|
|

Leader  | Nicola Sturgeon | Douglas Ross | Anas Sarwar
Party  | SNP | Conservative | Labour
Leader since  | 14 November 2014 | 5 August 2020 | 27 February 2021
Leader's seat  | Glasgow Southside | Highlands and Islands[a] | Glasgow
Last election  | 63 seats  | 31 seats  | 24 seats
Seats before  | 61  | 30  | 23
Seats won  | 64 | 31  | 22
Seat change  |  1  |  |  2
Constituency vote  | 1,291,204 | 592,526  | 584,392
% and swing  | 47.7% 1.2%  | 21.9% 0.1%  | 21.6% 1.0%
Regional vote  | 1,094,374 | 637,131  | 485,819
% and swing  | 40.3% 1.4%  | 23.5% 0.6%  | 17.9% 1.2%

* * *

| Fourth party  | Fifth party

Leader  | Lorna Slater /
Patrick Harvie | Willie Rennie
Party  | Scottish Green | Liberal Democrats
Leader since  | 1 August 2019 (Slater) /
22 November 2008 (Harvie)  | 17 May 2011
Leader's seat  | Lothian (Slater) /
Glasgow (Harvie)  | North East Fife
Last election  | 6 seats  | 5 seats
Seats before  | 5  | 5
Seats won  | 8  | 4
Seat change  |  2  |  1
Constituency vote  | 34,990  | 187,816
% and swing  | 1.3% 0.7%  | 6.9% 0.9%
Regional vote  | 220,324  | 137,151
% and swing  | 8.1% 1.5%  | 5.1% 0.1%

* * *

The map shows the election results in single-member constituencies. The additional member MSPs in the 8 regions are shown around the map.

* * *

| First Minister before election

Nicola Sturgeon
SNP

| First Minister after election

Nicola Sturgeon
SNP

|

The 2021 Scottish Parliament election took place on 6 May 2021 under the provisions of the Scotland Act 1998. It was the sixth Scottish Parliament election since the parliament was re-established in 1999. 129 Members of the Scottish Parliament were elected. The election was held alongside the Senedd election in Wales, English local elections, London Assembly and mayoral election and the Hartlepool by-election.

The election campaign started on 25 March 2021, during the COVID-19 pandemic in Scotland. As a result, Parliament went into recess on 5 May, the day before the election.[3] The main parties fielding candidates were: the Scottish National Party (SNP), led by First Minister Nicola Sturgeon; the Scottish Conservatives, led by Douglas Ross; Scottish Labour, led by Anas Sarwar; the Scottish Liberal Democrats, led by Willie Rennie, and the Scottish Greens, jointly led by Patrick Harvie and Lorna Slater. Of those five parties, three had changed their leader since the 2016 election.

Newer parties set up since the 2016 election included: Reform UK Scotland, led by Michelle Ballantyne; the Alba Party, led by former First Minister and SNP leader Alex Salmond; and All for Unity, led by George Galloway. These parties only competed for seats on the regional lists. They all failed to win any seats.

The election resulted in the SNP winning a fourth consecutive term in government. They won 64 seats, a net increase of one from the 2016 election. The SNP gained Edinburgh Central, Ayr, and East Lothian, as well as winning the largest share of the popular vote and the largest number of constituency seats in any Scottish Parliament election (62).[4] The Greens won eight seats, their best result to date at a Scottish Parliament election, while the Conservatives retained second place with 31 seats. Labour had its worst-ever result with 22 seats, and the lowest share of the vote in both constituency and list votes for either Westminster or Holyrood since 1910. The Liberal Democrats also had their worst showing at a Holyrood election to date, winning only four seats.[5]

The SNP and the Greens, both of which support Scottish independence, won 72 of the 129 seats in the parliament. Unionist parties (that is, those against independence) achieved a small majority of votes in constituency contests, whilst pro-independence parties achieved a small majority in the regional lists.[6] The turnout was 63.5%, which is the highest ever at a Scottish Parliament election. Following the election, the third Sturgeon government was formed. It initially consisted of just the SNP, but later included Slater and Harvie of the Scottish Greens as junior ministers after the two parties negotiated a power-sharing agreement.[7]

## Background

[edit]

### Electoral events

[edit]

#### 2016 Scottish Parliament election

[edit]

At the 2016 election, the ruling Scottish National Party (SNP) lost its parliamentary majority but was able to continue governing under Nicola Sturgeon as a minority administration.[8] At the same election, the Conservatives overtook Labour to place second, whilst the Greens overtook the Liberal Democrats to place fourth.[8] No representatives of minor parties were elected to the Parliament.[8]

#### Other elections

[edit]

Four further elections affecting Scotland took place between the 2016 and 2021 Scottish Parliament elections:

* May 2017: Scottish local government elections. The SNP retained its position as the largest party in terms of votes and councillors. The Conservatives displaced Labour as the second largest party, while the Liberal Democrats suffered a net loss of councillors despite increasing their share of the vote.[9]

* June 2017: United Kingdom general election. The SNP lost 21 of its MPs, winning 35 seats. The Conservatives won 13 seats, with their highest vote share in any election in Scotland since 1979. Labour won seven seats, while the Liberal Democrats won four.[10]

* May 2019: European Parliament election. This was dominated by the impending Brexit-deadline. The SNP won three of the six seats in Scotland, with the Brexit Party, Conservatives and Liberal Democrats each winning one seat.[11]

* December 2019: United Kingdom general election. The SNP increased its share of the vote, reclaiming thirteen of the seats they lost in 2017. The Conservatives won six Scottish seats with a net lost of seven. The Liberal Democrats won four seats with no net losses, but their leader, Jo Swinson, lost her own seat to the SNP. Labour was reduced to a single Scottish seat, a net loss of six.[12]

### Leadership changes

[edit]

Three parties had undergone leadership changes since the 2016 election. In August 2017, Kezia Dugdale resigned as leader of Scottish Labour and was replaced by Richard Leonard.[13] In January 2021, less than four months before the election, Leonard resigned.[14] Anas Sarwar won the subsequent leadership election.[15]

In August 2019, Lorna Slater and Patrick Harvie became co-leaders of the Scottish Greens.[16]

Also in August 2019, Ruth Davidson resigned as leader of the Scottish Conservatives and was succeeded by Jackson Carlaw.[17] Carlaw resigned as leader in July 2020,[18] with Douglas Ross winning the subsequent leadership election unopposed.[19]

### Expansion of the electorate

[edit]

The 2021 election was the first to come after the passage of the Scottish Elections (Franchise and Representation) Act, which extended the franchise to those serving prison sentences of 12 months or less.[20][21] In 2005, the United Kingdom was found in breach of Protocol 1, Article 3 of the European Convention on Human Rights in regards to prisoner voting rights in the European Court of Human Rights as a result of Hirst v United Kingdom (No 2); the Act brings Scotland in line with the court ruling.[22]

This act also allows all foreign nationals resident in Scotland to vote and all those with indefinite leave to remain or equivalent status, including pre–settled status in the United Kingdom, to stand as candidates.[23][20][24] A BBC News report in April 2021 said that there were around 55,000 foreign nationals who had been given the right to vote as a result of these changes, including 20,000 refugees.[24]

## Date

[edit]

Under the Scotland Act 1998, an ordinary general election to the Scottish Parliament would normally have been held on the first Thursday in May four years after the 2016 election, i.e. in May 2020.[25] This would have clashed with the proposed date of a UK general election, although this became a moot point when a snap UK general election was held in June 2017 (a further UK general election was held in December 2019).[26] In November 2015, the Scottish Government published a Scottish Elections (Dates) Bill, which proposed to extend the term of the Parliament to five years.[26] This was passed by the Scottish Parliament on 25 February 2016 and received Royal Assent on 30 March 2016, setting the new date for the election as 6 May 2021.[27]

The Scottish Elections (Dates) Act did not affect the legal possibilities for the Parliament to be dissolved earlier, those being;

* That the date of the poll may be varied by up to one month either way by the monarch, on the proposal of the Presiding Officer.[25]
* If Parliament itself resolves that it should be dissolved, with at least two-thirds of the Members (i.e. 86 Members) voting in favour, the Presiding Officer proposes a date for an extraordinary general election and the Parliament is dissolved by the monarch by royal proclamation.[28]
* If Parliament fails to nominate one of its members to be First Minister within 28 days, irrespective of whether at the beginning or in the middle of a parliamentary term.[28] Therefore, if the First Minister resigned, Parliament would then have 28 days to elect a successor and if no new First Minister was elected then the Presiding Officer would ask for Parliament to be dissolved. This process could also be triggered if the First Minister lost a vote of confidence by a simple majority, as they must then resign.

Nevertheless, no extraordinary general elections have been held to date. Any extraordinary general election would be in addition to the ordinary general elections, unless held less than six months before the due date of an ordinary general election, in which case it would supplant it.[28] This would not affect the year in which the subsequent ordinary general election would be held.[28]

On 16 November 2020, the Scottish General Election (Coronavirus) Bill was introduced.[29] This draft legislation stated that while the next election was intended to be held on 6 May 2021, the Presiding Officer would gain the power to postpone the election by up to six months if the spread of COVID-19 made that date impractical.[29] The bill also proposed to change the date of dissolution to the day before the election, meaning that the Parliament could be recalled during the election period.[29] The bill was enacted and received Royal Assent on 29 January 2021.[30] Parliament was in fact recalled on 12 April, to allow MSPs to mark the death of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh.[31]

## Retiring MSPs

[edit]

MSP  | Constituency/Region  | First elected  | Party  | Date announced

|
|
|
|

Neil Findlay | Lothian | 2011 |  | Labour | 28 May 2019[32][33]
Mary Fee | West Scotland | 2011 |  | 7 August 2019[32][34][35]
John Finnie | Highlands and Islands | 2011 |  | Green | 27 August 2019[32][36]
Elaine Smith | Central Scotland | 1999 |  | Labour | 3 September 2019[32][37]
Ruth Davidson | Edinburgh Central | 2011 |  | Conservative | 6 October 2019[32][38]
Bruce Crawford | Stirling | 1999 |  | SNP | 18 February 2020[32][39]
Richard Lyle | Uddingston and Bellshill | 2011 |  | 20 February 2020[32][40]
Gail Ross | Caithness, Sutherland and Ross | 2016 |  | 27 February 2020[32][41]
Michael Russell | Argyll and Bute | 1999 |  | 1 March 2020[32][42]
Stewart Stevenson | Banffshire and Buchan Coast | 2001 |  | 1 March 2020[32][42]
Mark McDonald | Aberdeen Donside | 2011 |  | Independent[b] | 5 March 2020[32][43]
Aileen Campbell | Clydesdale | 2007 |  | SNP | 8 March 2020[32][44]
Margaret Mitchell | Central Scotland | 2003 |  | Conservative | 18 April 2020[32][45]
David Stewart | Highlands and Islands | 2007 |  | Labour | 9 June 2020[32][46]
Angus MacDonald | Falkirk East | 2011 |  | SNP | 11 June 2020[32][47]
Iain Gray | East Lothian | 1999 |  | Labour | 18 June 2020[32][48]
Adam Tomkins | Glasgow | 2016 |  | Conservative | 17 July 2020[32][49]
Gil Paterson | Clydebank and Milngavie | 1999 |  | SNP | 31 July 2020[32][50]
Linda Fabiani | East Kilbride | 1999 |  | 11 August 2020[32][51]
Derek Mackay | Renfrewshire North and West | 2011 |  | Independent[c] | 14 August 2020[32][52]
Roseanna Cunningham | Perthshire South and Kinross-shire | 1999 |  | SNP | 22 August 2020[32][53]
Alex Neil | Airdrie and Shotts | 1999 |  | 23 August 2020[32][54]
Jeane Freeman | Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley | 2016 |  | 24 August 2020[32][55]
Sandra White | Glasgow Kelvin | 1999 |  | 27 August 2020[32][56]
Maureen Watt | Aberdeen South and North Kincardine | 2006[d] |  | 7 September 2020[32][57]
Peter Chapman | North East Scotland | 2016 |  | Conservative | September 2020[32]
Mike Rumbles | 1999 |  | Liberal Democrats | September 2020[32]
Ken Macintosh | West Scotland | 1999 |  | Presiding Officer[e] | 22 September 2020[32][58]
Jenny Marra | North East Scotland | 2011  |  | Labour | 28 November 2020[32][59]
Lewis Macdonald | 1999 |  | 30 November 2020[32][60]
Johann Lamont | Glasgow | 1999 |  | 4 March 2021[32][61]
Alison Harris | Central Scotland | 2016 |  | Conservative | 7 March 2021[62]
Bill Bowman | North East Scotland | 2016  |  | 9 March 2021[63]
Tom Mason | 2017  |  | 9 March 2021[63]

James Dornan announced in February 2020 his intention to retire at the next Holyrood election,[64] but reversed this decision some months later.[65]

## Parties

[edit]

See also: List of political parties in Scotland

The SNP, Conservatives, Labour and Liberal Democrats fielded candidates in all 73 constituencies and all eight of the regional ballots.[66] Five other parties contested both all eight regions and at least one constituency: the Scottish Greens (12 constituencies) the Scottish Libertarian Party (9), the Scottish Family Party (7), UKIP (5) and the Freedom Alliance (4). Four parties – Abolish the Scottish Parliament Party, Alba Party, All for Unity, and Reform UK – stood in all eight electoral regions, but did not contest any constituencies.

Six other parties contested some of the regions and at least one constituency: TUSC (3 regions and 3 constituencies), Restore Scotland (2 regions, 4 constituencies), Scotia Future (2 of each), the Communist Party of Britain (2 regions and 1 constituency), the Reclaim Party (1 of each) and the Vanguard Party (also 1 of each). Five other parties – Independent Green Voice (5 regions), Renew (5), the Social Democratic Party (2), Women's Equality (2) and Animal Welfare (1) – contested some of the regions, but not any constituencies.

The Scottish Socialist Party, which participated in the last election as part of the electoral alliance RISE – Scotland's Left Alliance, opted not to participate in this election, for the first time since its inception.

### List of parties contesting all regional ballots

[edit]

This list is incomplete; you can help by adding missing items. (April 2021)

|

Name  | Ideology  | Leader(s)  | 2016 Scottish Parliament election result  | Seats at dissolution

|
|
|
|

Votes (%)  | Seats
Constituency  | Regional
| Scottish National Party | Social democracy
Scottish independence | Nicola Sturgeon
MSP for Glasgow Southside | 46.5  | 41.7  |

63 / 129

61 / 129

| Scottish Conservatives | Conservatism
Unionism | Douglas Ross
Not an MSP | 22.0  | 22.9  |

31 / 129

30 / 129

| Scottish Labour | Social democracy
Unionism | Anas Sarwar
MSP for Glasgow region | 22.6  | 19.1  |

24 / 129

23 / 129

| Scottish Greens | Green politics
Scottish independence | Patrick Harvie (co-leader)
MSP for Glasgow region | 0.6  | 6.6  |

6 / 129

5 / 129

Lorna Slater (co-leader)
Not an MSP
| Scottish Liberal Democrats | Liberalism
Federalism | Willie Rennie
MSP for North East Fife | 7.8  | 5.2  |

5 / 129

5 / 129

|  Reform UK Scotland | Right-wing populism
Euroscepticism | Michelle Ballantyne
MSP for South Scotland region | –  | –  |

0 / 129

1 / 129

| UKIP Scotland | Right-wing populism
Anti-devolution | Donald Mackay[67]
Not an MSP | –  | 2.0  |

0 / 129

0 / 129

| Scottish Libertarian Party | Libertarianism
Scottish independence | Tam Laird
Not an MSP | 0.0  | 0.1  |

0 / 129

0 / 129

| Scottish Family Party | Anti-abortion
Social conservatism | Richard Lucas
Not an MSP | –  | –  | Did not exist  |

0 / 129

| Alba Party | Scottish nationalism
Scottish independence | Alex Salmond
Not an MSP | –  | –  | Did not exist  |

0 / 129

| All for Unity | Anti-nationalism
Unionism | George Galloway
Not an MSP | –  | –  | Did not exist  |

0 / 129

| Abolish the Scottish Parliament | Anti-devolution
Unionism | John Mortimer
Not an MSP | –  | –  | Did not exist  |

0 / 129

## Election system, seats and regions

[edit]

Main article: List of Scottish Parliament constituencies and electoral regions (2011–present)

An Electoral Commission voter guide booklet sent to Scottish households ahead of the election.

The total number of Members of the Scottish Parliament (MSPs) elected to the Parliament was 129.

The Scottish Parliament uses an additional member system (AMS), designed to produce approximate proportional representation for each region. There are 8 regions, each sub-divided into 8 to 10 single-member constituencies. There is a total of 73 constituencies. Each constituency elects one MSP by the plurality (first past the post) system of election. Each region elects 7 additional MSPs using an additional member system. A modified D'Hondt method using the constituency results is used to elect these additional MSPs.[68][69]

The boundaries of the 73 constituencies last changed as of the 2011 Scottish Parliament election, as did the configuration of the electoral regions used to elect "list" members of the Scottish Parliament.[70] These revisions were the outcome of the First Periodical Review of the Scottish Parliament's constituencies and regions conducted by the Boundary Commission for Scotland; the Review was announced on 3 July 2007 and the Commission published its final report on 26 May 2010.

The Scottish Parliament constituencies have not been coterminous with Scottish Westminster constituencies since the 2005 general election, when the 72 former UK Parliament constituencies were replaced with a new set of 59, generally larger, constituencies (see Scottish Parliament (Constituencies) Act 2004). The size difference between Westminster and Holyrood boundaries was due to diverge further upon the implementation of the Sixth Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies, which has not been voted upon by Parliament. The 2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies for a UK total of 650 MPs commenced in England in 2021 and will complete for the UK by 2023.

## Campaign

[edit]

The election campaign started on 25 March 2021.[3] The Scottish Conservatives launched their campaign the same day, with a focus on promoting Scotland's recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.[71]

On 26 March 2021, the Alba Party was publicly launched by former First Minister of Scotland and SNP leader, Alex Salmond.[72][73][74][75] The party announced plans to stand list-only candidates. Two sitting SNP MPs later defected to the Alba party.[76] The Action for Independence party, which had intended to pursue a similar list-only strategy, announced they would stand down their candidates in favour of Alba.[77] Sturgeon said she would refuse to have any dealings with Salmond unless he apologises to the women who had accused him of harassment.[78] Salmond was ultimately acquitted of all charges.

BBC Scotland announced that it would broadcast two debates between the main parties' leaders; the first was aired on 30 March 2021 and was moderated by the corporation's Scotland editor Sarah Smith.[79] The debate included key questions from the audience on the COVID-19 recovery, climate change, and a second referendum on Scottish independence. The second BBC debate was held on 4 May 2021 and was moderated by BBC Scotland's political editor Glenn Campbell.[80]

Commercial broadcaster STV held their leaders' debate on 13 April, moderated by their political editor Colin Mackay.[81][82][83] NUS Scotland held a debate, specifically on student issues, on 20 April; it was moderated by NUS Scotland president Matt Crilly and featured the three main party leaders.[84]

On 1 April, Planet Radio announced that their Clyde 2 station would be hosting a Leaders Phone-In with the main party leaders every Sunday before the election. Douglas Ross was the first to be interviewed on 4 April,[85] with Willie Rennie following on 18 April. Whilst Nicola Sturgeon was set to be interviewed on 11 April, campaigning was delayed following the death of Prince Philip and her phone-in was instead held on 22 April. Patrick Harvie followed on 25 April; and Anas Sarwar had the final phone-in on 2 May.[86]

Following Prince Philip's death on 9 April, the SNP, Conservatives, Labour, Greens and Liberal Democrats said they would suspend election campaigning until further notice.[87][88][89] After discussion between the parties, they agreed to resume campaigning after a special parliamentary session on 12 April to make tributes and to pause activities again on the day of the funeral (17 April).[31][90]

### Election debates

[edit]

2021 Scottish Parliament election debates  Date  | Organisers  | Moderator(s)  |  P  Present[f]    S  Surrogate[g]    NI  Not invited   A  Absent invitee  INV Invited

|
|
|

SNP | Conservatives | Labour | Greens | Lib Dems | Audience  | Ref.
|  |  |  |
30 March  | BBC Scotland |

Sarah Smith

| P
Sturgeon | P
Ross | P
Sarwar | P
Slater | P
Rennie | Virtual  | [91]
13 April  | STV | Colin Mackay | P
Sturgeon | P
Ross | P
Sarwar | P
Harvie | P
Rennie |  | [92]
20 April  | NUS Scotland | Matt Crilly  | P
Sturgeon | P
Ross | P
Sarwar | S
Greer[h] | S
Ford[i] | Virtual  | [84]
22 April  | BBC (Question Time Special)  | Fiona Bruce | S
Brown[j] | P
Ross | P
Sarwar | P
Slater | P
Rennie | Virtual  | [93]
27 April  | Channel 4 News | Krishnan Guru-Murthy | P
Sturgeon | P
Ross | P
Sarwar | P
Harvie | P
Rennie |  | [94]
4 May  | BBC Scotland | Glenn Campbell | P
Sturgeon | P
Ross | P
Sarwar | P
Harvie | P
Rennie |  | [95]

## Opinion polling

[edit]

Main article: Opinion polling for the 2021 Scottish Parliament election

Graph of opinion poll results prior to the 2021 Scottish Parliament election. Trendlines are 30-day moving averages.

Regional vote

Constituency vote

Key

SNP – Scottish National Party
Conservative – Scottish Conservatives
Labour – Scottish Labour
Lib Dem – Scottish Liberal Democrats
Green – Scottish Greens
UKIP – UK Independence Party
Reform – Reform UK
SSP – Scottish Socialist Party
Alba – Alba Party
AFU – All for Unity

## Target seats

[edit]

Below are listed all the constituencies which required a swing of less than 5% from the 2016 result to change hands. The most marginal opportunity for the Greens was in Glasgow Kelvin, which they needed a 7.1% swing to gain. The Liberal Democrats' best bet was Caithness, Sutherland and Ross, which required a 6.1% swing. The SNP ended up holding both of these constituencies.

### SNP targets

[edit]

Rank  | Constituency  | Winning party
in 2016  | Swing to
gain %  | SNP's place
in 2016  | Result

|
|
|
|
|

1  | Dumbarton |  | Labour | 0.17  | 2nd  |  | Labour hold
2  | Edinburgh Central |  | Conservative | 0.90  |  | SNP gain
3  | Ayr |  | Conservative | 1.00  |
4  | Aberdeenshire West |  | Conservative | 1.28  |  | Conservative hold
5  | East Lothian |  | Labour | 1.45  |  | SNP gain
6  | Edinburgh Southern |  | Labour | 1.47  |  | Labour hold
7  | Dumfriesshire |  | Conservative | 1.70  |  | Conservative hold
8  | Eastwood |  | Conservative | 2.22  |
9  | Galloway and West Dumfries |  | Conservative | 2.27  |
10  | Edinburgh Western |  | Liberal Democrats | 3.73  |  | Lib Dems hold

### Conservative targets

[edit]

Rank  | Constituency  | Winning party
in 2016  | Swing to
gain %  | Cons' place
in 2016  | Result

|
|
|
|
|

1  | Perthshire South and Kinross-shire |  | SNP | 1.97  | 2nd  |  | SNP hold
2  | Edinburgh Pentlands |  | SNP | 3.68  |
3  | Angus North and Mearns |  | SNP | 4.21  |
4  | Aberdeen South and North Kincardine |  | SNP | 4.26  |
5  | Moray |  | SNP | 4.30  |
6  | Edinburgh Southern |  | Labour | 4.74  | 3rd  |  | Labour hold
7  | Perthshire North |  | SNP | 4.90  | 2nd  |  | SNP hold

### Labour targets

[edit]

Rank  | Constituency  | Winning party
in 2016  | Swing to
gain %  | Labour's place
in 2016  | Result

|
|
|
|
|

1  | Eastwood |  | Conservative | 2.56  | 3rd  |  | Conservative hold
2  | Edinburgh Central |  | Conservative | 4.19  | 3rd  |  | SNP gain

## Results

[edit]

See also: Results of the 2021 Scottish Parliament election

Regional vote plurality in each constituency

SNP regional vote

Conservative regional vote

Labour regional vote

Green regional vote

Liberal Democrat regional vote

Election result with constituency names labeled

### Overall

[edit]

Party| Constituency| Regional| Total
seats| +/–

|
|
|
|

Votes| %| Seats| Votes| %| Seats
| Scottish National Party| 1,291,204| 47.70| 62| 1,094,374| 40.34| 2| 64| +1
| Conservative| 592,526| 21.89| 5| 637,131| 23.49| 26| 31| 0
| Labour| 584,392| 21.59| 2| 485,819| 17.91| 20| 22| –2
| Greens| 34,990| 1.29| 0| 220,324| 8.12| 8| 8| +2
| Liberal Democrats| 187,816| 6.94| 4| 137,151| 5.06| 0| 4| –1
| Alba| | 44,913| 1.66| 0| 0| New
| All for Unity| | 23,299| 0.86| 0| 0| New
| Scottish Family Party| 2,734| 0.10| 0| 16,085| 0.59| 0| 0| New
| Independent Green Voice| | 9,756| 0.36| 0| 0| New
| Abolish the Scottish Parliament| | 7,262| 0.27| 0| 0| New
| Freedom Alliance| 1,154| 0.04| 0| 6,271| 0.23| 0| 0| New
| Reform UK| | 5,793| 0.21| 0| 0| New
| Libertarian| 1,913| 0.07| 0| 4,987| 0.18| 0| 0| 0
| UKIP| 699| 0.03| 0| 3,898| 0.14| 0| 0| 0
| Animal Welfare| | 2,392| 0.09| 0| 0| 0
| Women's Equality| | 1,896| 0.07| 0| 0| 0
| TUSC| 959| 0.04| 0| 1,404| 0.05| 0| 0| 0
| Restore Scotland| 1,192| 0.04| 0| 1,149| 0.04| 0| 0| New
| Communist Party of Britain| 194| 0.01| 0| 1,142| 0.04| 0| 0| 0
| Renew| | 493| 0.02| 0| 0| New
| Scotia Future| 1,032| 0.04| 0| 451| 0.02| 0| 0| New
| Social Democratic| | 405| 0.01| 0| 0| New
| Reclaim| 114| 0.00| 0| 174| 0.01| 0| 0| New
| Vanguard| 67| 0.00| 0| 92| 0.00| 0| 0| New
| Liberal| 102| 0.00| 0| | 0| New
| Independents| 5,673| 0.21| 0| 6,122| 0.23| 0| 0| 0
Total| 2,706,761| 100.00| 73| 2,712,783| 100.00| 56| 129| 0
Valid votes| 2,706,761| 99.63| | 2,712,783| 99.81| |
Invalid/blank votes| 10,024| 0.37| | 5,282| 0.19| |
Total votes| 2,716,785| 100.00| | 2,718,065| 100.00| |
Registered voters/turnout| 4,280,785| 63.46| | 4,280,785| 63.49| |
Source: Electoral Management Board for Scotland

(Note: no mechanism is used to have the overall seat counts for each party reflect the party share of the overall vote. Each region is taken independently and seats in each region are allocated just as per the region's vote.)

### Votes summary

[edit]

↓  64 | 8 | 31 | 22 | 4

|
|
|
|

SNP |  Green | Conservative | Labour | LD

| Popular Vote (Constituency)

|  |
SNP |

| 47.70%
Conservative |

| 21.89%
Labour |

| 21.59%
Liberal Democrats |

| 6.94%
Green |

| 1.29%
Other |

| 0.59%

| Popular Vote (Regional)

|  |
SNP |

| 40.34%
Conservative |

| 23.49%
Labour |

| 17.91%
Green |

| 8.12%
Liberal Democrats |

| 5.06%
Alba |

| 1.66%
Other |

| 3.42%

| Parliament seats

|  |
SNP |

| 49.61%
Conservative |

| 24.00%
Labour |

| 17.05%
Green |

| 6.20%
Liberal Democrats |

| 3.10%

### Central Scotland

[edit]

2021 Scottish Parliament election: Central Scotland constituencies

Constituency  | Elected member  | Result
| Airdrie and Shotts | Neil Gray | SNP hold
| Coatbridge and Chryston | Fulton MacGregor
| Cumbernauld and Kilsyth | Jamie Hepburn
| East Kilbride | Collette Stevenson
| Falkirk East | Michelle Thomson
| Falkirk West | Michael Matheson
| Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse | Christina McKelvie
| Motherwell and Wishaw | Clare Adamson
| Uddingston and Bellshill | Stephanie Callaghan
2021 Scottish Parliament election: Central Scotland regional list  Party  | Elected candidates  | Seats  | +/−  | Votes  | %  | +/−%

|
|
|
|
|
|

| SNP |  | 0  |  | 148,399  | 45.3  |  2.4
| Labour | Richard Leonard
Monica Lennon
Mark Griffin | 3  |  1  | 77,623  | 23.7  |  1.1
| Conservative | Stephen Kerr
Graham Simpson
Meghan Gallacher | 3  |  | 59,896  | 18.3  |  2.2
| Scottish Green | Gillian Mackay | 1  |  1  | 19,512  | 6.0  |  1.3

### Glasgow

[edit]

2021 Scottish Parliament election: Glasgow constituencies

Constituency  | Elected member  | Result
| Glasgow Anniesland | Bill Kidd | SNP hold
| Glasgow Cathcart | James Dornan
| Glasgow Kelvin | Kaukab Stewart
| Glasgow Maryhill and Springburn | Bob Doris
| Glasgow Pollok | Humza Yousaf
| Glasgow Provan | Ivan McKee
| Glasgow Shettleston | John Mason
| Glasgow Southside | Nicola Sturgeon
| Rutherglen | Clare Haughey
2021 Scottish Parliament election: Glasgow regional list  Party  | Elected candidates  | Seats  | +/−  | Votes  | %  | +/−%

|
|
|
|
|
|

| SNP |  | 0  |  | 133,917  | 43.9  |  0.9
| Labour | Pauline McNeill
Anas Sarwar
Paul Sweeney
Pam Duncan-Glancy | 4  |  | 74,088  | 24.3  |  0.5
| Conservative | Annie Wells
Sandesh Gulhane | 2  |  | 37,027  | 12.1  |  0.2
| Scottish Green | Patrick Harvie | 1  |  | 36,114  | 11.8  |  2.4

### Highlands and Islands

[edit]

2021 Scottish Parliament election: Highlands and Islands constituencies

Constituency  | Elected member  | Result
| Argyll and Bute | Jenni Minto | SNP hold
| Caithness, Sutherland and Ross | Maree Todd
| Inverness and Nairn | Fergus Ewing
| Moray | Richard Lochhead
| Na h-Eileanan an Iar | Alasdair Allan
| Orkney | Liam McArthur | Liberal Democrat hold
| Shetland | Beatrice Wishart
| Skye, Lochaber and Badenoch | Kate Forbes | SNP hold
2021 Scottish Parliament election: Highlands and Islands regional list  Party  | Elected candidates  | Seats  | +/−  | Votes  | %  | +/−%

|
|
|
|
|
|

| SNP | Emma Roddick | 1  |  | 96,433  | 40.4  |  0.7
| Conservative | Douglas Ross
Donald Cameron
Edward Mountain
Jamie Halcro Johnston | 4  |  1  | 60,779  | 25.4  |  3.6
| Liberal Democrats |  | 0  |  | 26,771  | 11.2  |  2.1
| Labour | Rhoda Grant | 1  |  1  | 22,713  | 9.5  |  1.7
| Scottish Green | Ariane Burgess | 1  |  | 17,729  | 7.4  |  0.2

### Lothian

[edit]

2021 Scottish Parliament election: Lothian constituencies

Constituency  | Elected member  | Result
| Almond Valley | Angela Constance | SNP hold
| Edinburgh Central | Angus Robertson | SNP gain from Conservative
| Edinburgh Eastern | Ash Denham | SNP hold
| Edinburgh Northern and Leith | Ben Macpherson
| Edinburgh Pentlands | Gordon MacDonald
| Edinburgh Southern | Daniel Johnson | Labour hold
| Edinburgh Western | Alex Cole-Hamilton | Liberal Democrat hold
| Linlithgow | Fiona Hyslop | SNP hold
| Midlothian North and Musselburgh | Colin Beattie
2021 Scottish Parliament election: Lothian regional list  Party  | Elected candidates  | Seats  | +/−  | Votes  | %  | +/−%

|
|
|
|
|
|

| SNP |  | 0  |  | 141,478  | 35.9  |  0.3
| Conservative | Miles Briggs
Sue Webber
Jeremy Balfour | 3  |  | 78,595  | 19.9  |  3.0
| Labour | Sarah Boyack
Foysol Choudhury | 2  |  | 76,689  | 19.4  |  1.4
| Scottish Green | Alison Johnstone
Lorna Slater | 2  |  | 49,984  | 12.7  |  2.1
| Liberal Democrats |  | 0  |  | 28,433  | 7.2  |  1.6

### Mid Scotland and Fife

[edit]

2021 Scottish Parliament election: Mid Scotland and Fife constituencies

Constituency  | Elected member  | Result
| Clackmannanshire and Dunblane | Keith Brown | SNP hold
| Cowdenbeath | Annabelle Ewing
| Dunfermline | Shirley-Anne Somerville
| Kirkcaldy | David Torrance
| Mid Fife and Glenrothes | Jenny Gilruth
| North East Fife | Willie Rennie | Liberal Democrat hold
| Perthshire North | John Swinney | SNP hold
| Perthshire South and Kinross-shire | Jim Fairlie
| Stirling | Evelyn Tweed
2021 Scottish Parliament election: Mid Scotland and Fife regional list  Party  | Elected candidates  | Seats  | +/−  | Votes  | %  | +/−%

|
|
|
|
|
|

| SNP |  | 0  |  | 136,825  | 39.8  |  1.5
| Conservative | Murdo Fraser
Liz Smith
Dean Lockhart
Alexander Stewart | 4  |  | 85,909  | 25.0  |  0.2
| Labour | Claire Baker
Alex Rowley | 2  |  | 52,626  | 15.3  |  2.3
| Scottish Green | Mark Ruskell | 1  |  | 28,654  | 8.3  |  2.2
| Liberal Democrats |  | 0  |  | 25,489  | 7.4  |  0.4

### North East Scotland

[edit]

2021 Scottish Parliament election: North East Scotland constituencies

Constituency  | Elected member  | Result
| Aberdeen Central | Kevin Stewart | SNP hold
| Aberdeen Donside | Jackie Dunbar
| Aberdeen South and North Kincardine | Audrey Nicoll
| Aberdeenshire East | Gillian Martin
| Aberdeenshire West | Alexander Burnett | Conservative hold
| Angus North & Mearns | Mairi Gougeon | SNP hold
| Angus South | Graeme Dey
| Banffshire & Buchan Coast | Karen Adam
| Dundee City East | Shona Robison
| Dundee City West | Joe FitzPatrick
2021 Scottish Parliament election: North East Scotland regional list  Party  | Elected candidates  | Seats  | +/−  | Votes  | %  | +/−%

|
|
|
|
|
|

| SNP |  | 0  |  | 147,910  | 40.9  |  3.8
| Conservative | Liam Kerr
Douglas Lumsden
Maurice Golden
Tess White | 4  |  | 110,555  | 30.6  |  2.6
| Labour | Michael Marra
Mercedes Villalba | 2  |  | 41,062  | 11.4  |  1.2
| Scottish Green | Maggie Chapman | 1  |  1  | 22,735  | 6.3  |  1.4
| Liberal Democrats |  | 0  |  1  | 18,051  | 5.0  |  1.0

### South Scotland

[edit]

2021 Scottish Parliament election: South Scotland constituencies

Constituency  | Elected member  | Result
| Ayr | Siobhian Brown | SNP gain from Conservative
| Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley | Elena Whitham | SNP hold
| Clydesdale | Màiri McAllan
| Dumfriesshire | Oliver Mundell | Conservative hold
| East Lothian | Paul McLennan | SNP gain from Labour
| Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire | Rachael Hamilton | Conservative hold
| Galloway and West Dumfries | Finlay Carson
| Kilmarnock and Irvine Valley | Willie Coffey | SNP hold
| Midlothian South, Tweeddale and Lauderdale | Christine Grahame
2021 Scottish Parliament election: South Scotland regional list  Party  | Elected candidates  | Seats  | +/−  | Votes  | %  | +/−%

|
|
|
|
|
|

| SNP | Emma Harper | 1  |  2  | 136,741  | 37.6  |  0.7
| Conservative | Craig Hoy
Brian Whittle
Sharon Dowey | 3  |  1  | 121,730  | 33.5  |  1.4
| Labour | Colin Smyth
Carol Mochan
Martin Whitfield | 3  |  1  | 57,236  | 15.7  |  2.1

### West Scotland

[edit]

2021 Scottish Parliament election: West Scotland constituencies

Constituency  | Elected member  | Result
| Clydebank and Milngavie | Marie McNair | SNP hold
| Cunninghame North | Kenneth Gibson
| Cunninghame South | Ruth Maguire
| Dumbarton | Jackie Baillie | Labour hold
| Eastwood | Jackson Carlaw | Conservative hold
| Greenock and Inverclyde | Stuart McMillan | SNP hold
| Paisley | George Adam
| Renfrewshire North and West | Natalie Don
| Renfrewshire South | Tom Arthur
| Strathkelvin and Bearsden | Rona Mackay
2021 Scottish Parliament election: West Scotland regional list  Party  | Elected candidates  | Seats  | +/−  | Votes  | %  | +/−%

|
|
|
|
|
|

| SNP |  | 0  |  | 152,671  | 40.4  |  1.8
| Labour | Neil Bibby
Katy Clark
Paul O'Kane | 3  |  | 83,782  | 22.2  |  0.3
| Conservative | Russell Findlay
Jamie Greene
Pam Gosal | 3  |  | 82,640  | 21.9  |  0.3
| Scottish Green | Ross Greer | 1  |  | 26,632  | 7.1  |  1.8

### Constituency seat changes compared to 2016

[edit]

Constituency  | Gain  | Loss

|
|

Ayr |  | SNP  |  | Conservative
East Lothian |  |  | Labour
Edinburgh Central |  |  | Conservative

### MSPs who lost their seats

[edit]

MSP  | Constituency/Region  | Party

|
|

Michelle Ballantyne[96] | South Scotland |  | Reform
Claudia Beamish[97] | South Scotland |  | Labour
Maurice Corry | West Scotland |  | Conservative
James Kelly[98] | Glasgow |  | Labour
Gordon Lindhurst | Lothian |  | Conservative
Joan McAlpine[99] | South Scotland |  | SNP
John Scott[100] | Ayr |  | Conservative
Paul Wheelhouse[99] | South Scotland |  | SNP
Andy Wightman[101] | Lothian (contested Highlands and Islands)  |  | Scottish Greens (contested as independent)

### Analysis

[edit]

The SNP won 64 seats, falling one seat short of an overall majority.[102] Some commentators put this down to unionists voting tactically for Conservative, Labour and Liberal Democrat candidates.[103][104] According to psephologist John Curtice, "Denying the SNP an overall majority was, indeed, a collective effort – at least on the part of Unionist voters, who on the constituency ballot demonstrated a remarkable willingness to back whichever pro-Union party appeared to be best placed locally to defeat the SNP. [...] These patterns had a decisive impact on the outcome."[105] This was apparent in seats like Dumbarton, where incumbent Labour MSP Jackie Baillie saw her 0.3% majority increased to 3.9%, whilst both the Conservative and Lib Dem vote share decreased.[106]

In The National, Emer O'Toole questioned whether social media adverts with "a lack of transparency over funding" may have cost the SNP key seats as well.[107] The day before the election, The Guardian reported that anti-independence groups and campaigners had "spent tens of thousands of pounds in the past week", including on Facebook adverts, calling for tactical voting to prevent the SNP getting a majority.[108] One of these groups was Scotland Matters, whose founder, Professor Hugh Pennington said, "Across the country as a whole, tactical voting is obviously one of the ways forward to basically harm the SNP, not to put too fine a point on it."[108]

Additionally, the Greens claimed that they may have been deprived of two seats because of Independent Green Voice (IGV), a far-right party which has nothing to do with the Scottish Greens (who support Scottish independence). IGV received nearly 10,000 votes, including 2,210 in Glasgow (where the Greens were 1,000 short of gaining a seat) and 1,690 in South Scotland (where the Greens fell 100 short). This potentially prevented pro-independence parties from having a 19-seat majority instead of 15 seats.[109]

The Scottish and Welsh Election Studies 2021, revealed on 13 June, found that around a third of Scottish voters who decided to vote differently in the run-up to the election did so to stop another party, and that 90% of those who did this did so in a bid to prevent the SNP winning the seat. Rob Johns, Professor in Politics at the University of Essex, said: "[W]e found a lot more switching than we had expected. The polls had suggested that not much was changing and obviously the overall election result was almost eerily similar to 2016. That can mean that nobody has changed their mind or it can mean lots of people have changed their mind – but these have cancelled out as people have moved in opposing directions. We found there was quite a lot more of that than we had expected."[110]

### Voter demographics

[edit]

Data from Savanta ComRes:[111]

The 2021 Scottish Parliament constituency vote

Social group  | SNP | Con | Lab | Lib Dem | Others
|  |  |
Total vote  | 48 | 22  | 18  | 5  | 7
Gender
Male  | 43 | 26  | 24  | 7  | 0
Female  | 52 | 16  | 24  | 5  | 3
Age
16–34  | 58 | 10  | 24  | 3  | 5
35–54  | 51 | 16  | 25  | 5  | 3
55+  | 38 | 31  | 22  | 9  | 0

## Campaign spending

[edit]

Party  | Expenses[112][113]

|

| SNP | £1,468,343
| Conservative | £1,359,435
| Labour | £1,176,410
| Liberal Democrats | £434,354
| Scottish Green | £231,902
| Alba | £214,371
| Reform UK | £54,504
| Scottish Family | £32,908
| All for Unity | £29,620
| TUSC | £13,753
| Reclaim | £10,199
| UKIP | £8,230
| Freedom Alliance  | £7,387
| Communist | £6,420

## Aftermath

[edit]

Further information: Third Sturgeon government and Scottish National Party–Scottish Greens agreement

Election of the First Minister

Ballot →  | 18 May 2021
Required majority →  | 50 out of 99 valid votes

Nicola Sturgeon (SNP)

* • Scottish National Party (64)

64 / 129

| Y

Douglas Ross (Conservative)

* • Scottish Conservatives (31)

31 / 129

| N

Willie Rennie (Lib Dem)

* • Scottish Liberal Democrats (4)

4 / 129

| N

Abstentions

* • Scottish Labour (21)
* • Scottish Greens (7)

28 / 129

Not voting

* • Scottish Labour (1)
* • Presiding Officer (1)

2 / 129

Sources[114]

Nicola Sturgeon was nominated as First Minister by a vote held on 18 May 2021.[115] Her cabinet was approved by the parliament two days later and thus the Third Sturgeon government, a minority government, was formed.[116]

On 3 August 2021, it was reported that a co-operation agreement between the SNP and the Greens was "on the brink of being finalised" and could see Green MSPs take ministerial positions in government.[117] On 19 August, the power-sharing agreement between the two parties was announced.[7] Under the terms of the agreement, the Greens have two MSPs appointed as junior ministers in the government who are invited to attend cabinet meetings when their portfolios are being discussed. The Greens signed up to the bulk of the SNP's policies, but in areas of disagreement such as international relations and fee-paying schools the two parties are free to publicly disagree.[7] The agreement states that the Greens support the government on votes of confidence and supply.[118]

A deal that would see Patrick Harvie and Lorna Slater made ministers was revealed on 26 August, subject to being voted upon by Green Party members.[119][120] Two days later, members of both parties overwhelmingly voted in favour of the deal.[121]

## See also

[edit]

Other elections in the UK which were held on the same day:

* 2021 London Assembly election
* 2021 London mayoral election
* 2021 Senedd election
* 2021 United Kingdom local elections

## Footnotes

[edit]

1. ^ Elected on the Highlands and Islands regional list while concurrently sitting as a Westminster MP for Moray.[1] Ruth Davidson, the Conservative leader at Holyrood before the leader, stood down at the election to take a seat in the House of Lords.[2]
2. ^ Originally elected as SNP
3. ^ Originally elected as SNP
4. ^ Co-opted to replace Richard Lochhead, who became a constituency MSP in the 2006 Moray by-election
5. ^ Originally elected as Labour
6. ^ Denotes a main invitee attending the event.
7. ^ Denotes a main invitee not attending the event, sending a surrogate in their place.
8. ^ Ross Greer, Scottish Green spokesperson on International Development and External Affairs, Education and Skills, and Culture and Media.
9. ^ Carole Ford, Liberal Democrat spokesperson on Children and Young People.
10. ^ Keith Brown, SNP Depute Leader.

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Douglas Ross to stand for Scottish Tory leadership". BBC News. 31 July 2020. Archived from the original on 31 July 2020. Retrieved 31 July 2020.
2. ^ "Ruth Davidson to join House of Lords". BBC News. 31 July 2020. Archived from the original on 31 July 2020. Retrieved 31 July 2020.
3. ^ a b Macnab, Scott (5 February 2021). "Holyrood to stop sitting on March 25 ahead of Scottish election". The Scotsman. Edinburgh. Archived from the original on 16 February 2021. Retrieved 25 March 2021.
4. ^ Marlborough, Conor; Swanson, Ian (6 May 2021). "Scottish election 2021: Will the SNP win a majority? Seven key questions the Scottish Parliament vote will answer". MSN. Archived from the original on 7 May 2021. Retrieved 7 May 2021.
5. ^ "SNP win election one seat short of majority". BBC News. 8 May 2021. Archived from the original on 13 February 2022. Retrieved 9 May 2021.
6. ^ Curtice, John (10 May 2021). "Tactical vote reinforces Scotland's great divide". The Times. Archived from the original on 7 June 2021. Retrieved 10 May 2021.
7. ^ a b c "SNP and Greens agree new power-sharing deal". BBC News. 19 August 2021. Archived from the original on 24 August 2021. Retrieved 19 August 2021.
8. ^ a b c "Holyrood 2016: SNP claims 'historic' win but no majority". BBC News. 6 May 2016. Archived from the original on 17 September 2020. Retrieved 31 July 2020.
9. ^ "Council election results: Sturgeon hails victory despite Tory surge". BBC News. 5 May 2017. Archived from the original on 3 June 2017. Retrieved 31 July 2020.
10. ^ "General election 2017: SNP lose a third of seats amid Tory surge". BBC News. 9 June 2017. Archived from the original on 12 August 2020. Retrieved 31 July 2020.
11. ^ "EU Elections 2019: SNP secures three seats as Labour vote collapses". BBC News. 27 May 2019. Archived from the original on 27 May 2019. Retrieved 31 July 2020.
12. ^ "Election results 2019: Boris Johnson returns to power with big majority". BBC News. 13 December 2019. Archived from the original on 1 August 2020. Retrieved 31 July 2020.
13. ^ Carrell, Severin (18 November 2017). "Richard Leonard wins Scottish Labour leadership in decisive victory". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 18 November 2017. Retrieved 22 May 2020.
14. ^ "Richard Leonard quits as Scottish Labour leader". BBC News. 14 January 2021. Archived from the original on 14 January 2021. Retrieved 14 January 2021.
15. ^ Rodgers, Sienna (27 February 2021). "Anas Sarwar elected as new leader of Scottish Labour Party". LabourList. Archived from the original on 22 May 2021. Retrieved 10 May 2021.
16. ^ "Scottish Greens elect Patrick Harvie and Lorna Slater as co-leaders". The Herald. 1 August 2019. Archived from the original on 10 May 2021. Retrieved 9 May 2021.
17. ^ "Jackson Carlaw elected leader of Scottish Conservatives". Holyrood Website. 14 February 2020. Archived from the original on 11 March 2020. Retrieved 22 May 2020.
18. ^ "Jackson Carlaw quits as Scottish Conservative leader". HeraldScotland. 30 July 2020. Archived from the original on 31 July 2020. Retrieved 30 July 2020.
19. ^ "Douglas Ross confirmed as Scottish Conservative leader". BBC News. 5 August 2020. Archived from the original on 5 August 2020. Retrieved 23 August 2020.
20. ^ a b "MSPs back plans to give refugees in Scotland the vote". Holyrood Website. 16 January 2020. Archived from the original on 18 January 2020. Retrieved 22 May 2020.
21. ^ "Scottish Elections (Franchise and Representation) Bill". Scottish Parliament. Archived from the original on 21 July 2020. Retrieved 31 July 2020.
22. ^ Johnson, Neil (2 April 2020). "Prisoners' voting rights: developments since May 2015". House of Commons Library. Archived from the original on 17 July 2020. Retrieved 31 July 2020.
23. ^ "Scottish Elections (Franchise and Representation) Bill – Explanatory Notes" (PDF). Scottish Parliament. Archived (PDF) from the original on 30 May 2020. Retrieved 31 July 2020.
24. ^ a b Shanks, David (23 April 2021). "Scottish election 2021: Right to vote 'changes my life', says Syrian refugee". BBC News. Archived from the original on 22 April 2021. Retrieved 23 April 2021.
25. ^ a b "Scotland Act 1998 – Section 2 Ordinary General Elections". Office of Public Sector Information. Archived from the original on 22 May 2016. Retrieved 10 May 2016.
26. ^ a b "Scottish Elections (Dates) Bill published". Scottish Government. 18 November 2015. Archived from the original on 4 June 2016. Retrieved 6 May 2016.
27. ^ "Scottish Elections (Dates) Act 2016". legislation.gov.uk. Archived from the original on 25 October 2016. Retrieved 7 May 2016.
28. ^ a b c d "Scotland Act 1998 – Section 3 Extraordinary General Elections". Office of Public Sector Information. Archived from the original on 8 September 2009. Retrieved 8 May 2007.
29. ^ a b c "Scottish General Election (Coronavirus) Bill". Scottish Parliament. Archived from the original on 17 November 2020. Retrieved 17 November 2020.
30. ^ "Scottish General Election (Coronavirus) Act 2021 (asp 5): explanatory notes". TSO (The Stationery Office). Archived from the original on 13 February 2022. Retrieved 9 May 2021.
31. ^ a b "Scottish election 2021: Holyrood recalled as campaign paused after duke death". BBC News. 9 April 2021. Archived from the original on 9 April 2021. Retrieved 10 April 2021.
32. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae "Holyrood 2021 election: Which MSPs are standing down?". BBC News. 30 November 2020. Archived from the original on 16 May 2021. Retrieved 30 November 2020.
33. ^ "Two MSPs quit Scottish Labour front bench team". BBC News. 28 May 2019. Archived from the original on 27 June 2019. Retrieved 9 November 2019.
34. ^ "MSP Mary Fee to retire". Arran Banner. 16 August 2019. Archived from the original on 10 May 2021. Retrieved 23 August 2020.
35. ^ Fee, Mary [@MaryFeeMSP] (7 August 2019). "It has been an honour to be a Member of the Scottish Parliament and I am proud of the work I have done on equalities and for constituents in West Scotland. Thank you to every person I have worked with and to people in West Scotland for this fantastic opportunity to serve" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
36. ^ Kirkaldy, Liam (27 August 2019). "John Finnie to stand down at 2021 Scottish Parliament election". Holyrood Magazine. Archived from the original on 14 October 2019. Retrieved 14 October 2019.
37. ^ Tonner, Judith (3 September 2019). "Central Scotland MSP to stand down from Scottish Parliament before next election". Daily Record. Archived from the original on 9 November 2019. Retrieved 9 November 2019.
38. ^ Crichton, Torcuil (22 November 2019). "Ruth Davidson reveals she will not stand as an MSP again in 2021". Daily Record. Archived from the original on 27 November 2019. Retrieved 27 November 2019.
39. ^ "Bruce Crawford to step down at 2021 Scottish election". Holyrood Magazine. 18 February 2020. Archived from the original on 18 February 2020. Retrieved 18 February 2020.
40. ^ Nutt, Kathleen (20 February 2020). "SNP MP Richard Lyle to stand down ahead of 2021 election". The National. Archived from the original on 25 February 2020. Retrieved 25 February 2020.
41. ^ Gordon, Tom (27 February 2020). "Fourth SNP MSP quits at Holyrood election". The Herald. Archived from the original on 27 February 2020. Retrieved 27 February 2020.
42. ^ a b "Two leading SNP figures to step down from Holyrood". BBC News. 1 March 2020. Archived from the original on 1 March 2020. Retrieved 1 March 2020.
43. ^ "Former minister Mark McDonald to stand down at next election". BBC News. 5 March 2020. Archived from the original on 5 March 2020. Retrieved 6 March 2020.
44. ^ "SNP minister Aileen Campbell quits for better 'work-life balance'". BBC News. 8 March 2020. Archived from the original on 8 March 2020. Retrieved 8 March 2020.
45. ^ "Central Scotland Conservative MSP Margaret Mitchell will not seek re-election". Daily Record. 18 April 2020. Archived from the original on 25 April 2020. Retrieved 29 April 2020.
46. ^ Kirkaldy, Liam (9 June 2020). "David Stewart to stand down as MSP". Holyrood Magazine. Archived from the original on 11 June 2020. Retrieved 11 June 2020.
47. ^ Beaton, Ailean (11 June 2020). "Angus MacDonald to step down as MSP". Holyrood Magazine. Archived from the original on 11 June 2020. Retrieved 11 June 2020.
48. ^ "Former Scottish Labour leader Iain Gray to quit Holyrood". BBC News. 18 June 2020. Archived from the original on 18 June 2020. Retrieved 18 June 2020.
49. ^ McCall, Chris (17 July 2020). "Tory MSP Adam Tomkins to stand down at 2021 Scottish Parliament election". Daily Record. Archived from the original on 18 July 2020. Retrieved 18 July 2020.
50. ^ Stewart-Robertson, Tristan (31 July 2020). "Clydebank MSP Gil Paterson to retire at next election". Clydebank Post. Archived from the original on 1 August 2020. Retrieved 31 July 2020.
51. ^ Mullen, Stacey (12 August 2020). "East Kilbride MSP Linda Fabiani to step down at next Holyrood election". Glasgow Times. Archived from the original on 18 August 2020. Retrieved 23 August 2020.
52. ^ "Mackay will not stand for SNP at 2021 election". Daily Business Group. 14 August 2020. Archived from the original on 25 February 2021. Retrieved 27 March 2021.
53. ^ "SNP minister Roseanna Cunningham to stand down as MSP". BBC News. 22 August 2020. Archived from the original on 4 December 2020. Retrieved 22 August 2020.
54. ^ "Former SNP minister Alex Neil to stand down as MSP". BBC News. 23 August 2020. Archived from the original on 5 September 2020. Retrieved 23 August 2020.
55. ^ "Jeane Freeman to stand down at Scottish election". BBC News. 24 August 2020. Archived from the original on 24 August 2020. Retrieved 24 August 2020.
56. ^ "Sandra White becomes 13th SNP politician to stand down". 27 August 2020. Archived from the original on 27 August 2020. Retrieved 27 August 2020 – via www.thenational.scot.
57. ^ "Aberdeen SNP MSP Maureen Watt to stand down from Holyrood in 2021". 7 September 2020. Archived from the original on 8 September 2020. Retrieved 7 September 2020 – via pressandjournal.co.uk.
58. ^ "Holyrood's presiding officer Ken Macintosh to stand down next year". BBC News. 22 September 2020. Archived from the original on 23 September 2020. Retrieved 22 September 2020.
59. ^ Dingwall, Blair (28 November 2020). "'It has been a privilege': Family comes first as Dundee Labour MSP Jenny Marra to stand down". The Courier. Archived from the original on 28 November 2020. Retrieved 29 November 2020.
60. ^ Peterkin, Tom (30 November 2020). "Lewis Macdonald: MSP is stepping down from Holyrood next year". Press and Journal. Archived from the original on 30 November 2020. Retrieved 30 November 2020.
61. ^ Lamont, Johann [@JohannLamont] (4 March 2021). "I am definitely standing down. Wiki notwithstanding. 😀😄" (Tweet). Retrieved 10 March 2021 – via Twitter.
62. ^ Scottish Conservatives [@ScotTories] (7 March 2021). "🔔@ScotTories candidate list rankings announcement🔔
Here is Central Scotland 👇 https://t.co/Q1E84TYxBH" (Tweet). Retrieved 7 March 2021 – via Twitter.
63. ^ a b Scottish Conservatives [@ScotTories] (9 March 2021). "🔔@ScotTories candidate list rankings🔔
Here is the North East. 👇 https://t.co/ULGBIUWGcB" (Tweet). Retrieved 10 March 2021 – via Twitter.
64. ^ "SNP MSP James Dornan announces plan to stand down". The Herald. 26 February 2020. Archived from the original on 26 February 2020. Retrieved 26 February 2020.
65. ^ Nutt, Kathleen (2 July 2020). "Glasgow MSP James Dornan launches bid for 2021 seat". Glasgow Times. Archived from the original on 7 July 2020. Retrieved 6 July 2020.
66. ^ "Scottish election 2021: Deadline closes for candidates". BBC News. 1 April 2021. Archived from the original on 31 March 2021. Retrieved 4 April 2021.
67. ^ "UKIP Scotland Team". Archived from the original on 3 May 2021. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
68. ^ "Electoral system: How it works, 02 April 2003". BBC News. 2 April 2003. Archived from the original on 4 September 2007. Retrieved 6 May 2011.
69. ^ "D'Hondt system". BBC News. 28 September 2009. Archived from the original on 13 November 2011. Retrieved 4 May 2011.
70. ^ "Revised Recommendations" (PDF). Boundary Commission for Scotland. Archived from the original (PDF) on 12 June 2011. Retrieved 26 April 2011.
71. ^ "Scottish Conservatives launch Holyrood campaign with 'rebuild' pledge". BBC News. 25 March 2021. Archived from the original on 25 March 2021. Retrieved 25 March 2021.
72. ^ "Who is the Alba Party, the new group led by Alex Salmond running for seats in Holyrood". The Scotsman. Archived from the original on 27 March 2021. Retrieved 26 March 2021.
73. ^ "Alex Salmond to lead new Alba Party into Scottish Parliament election". The National. 26 March 2021. Archived from the original on 26 March 2021. Retrieved 26 March 2021.
74. ^ "Alex Salmond launches new independence-focused political party". The Guardian. 26 March 2021. Archived from the original on 26 March 2021. Retrieved 26 March 2021.
75. ^ "Alex Salmond launches new political party". BBC News. 26 March 2021. Archived from the original on 27 March 2021. Retrieved 26 March 2021.
76. ^ Gordon, Tom (28 March 2021). "Alba defectors urged to resign as MPs". The Herald. Archived from the original on 28 March 2021. Retrieved 28 March 2021.
77. ^ Barrie, Douglas (26 March 2021). "Action for Independence stands down candidates after Salmond announcement". Evening Standard. Archived from the original on 26 March 2021. Retrieved 28 March 2021.
78. ^ Johnson, Simon (30 March 2021). "Nicola Sturgeon: I will refuse to deal with Alex Salmond unless he apologises to accusers". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 12 January 2022 – via www.telegraph.co.uk.
79. ^ "Scotland election 2021: Party leaders clash over need for indyref2". BBC News. 30 March 2021. Archived from the original on 30 March 2021. Retrieved 31 March 2021.
80. ^ "Two leaders' debates to form part of BBC Scotland's Holyrood election coverage". HeraldScotland. 22 March 2021. Archived from the original on 25 March 2021. Retrieved 25 March 2021.
81. ^ "Scottish election 2021: Alex Salmond demands Alba Party included in TV debates". www.scotsman.com. April 2021. Archived from the original on 1 April 2021. Retrieved 3 April 2021.
82. ^ "Scottish election 2021: Scottish party leaders pitch Covid recovery plans". BBC News. 13 April 2021. Archived from the original on 13 April 2021. Retrieved 14 April 2021.
83. ^ Mitchell, Jenness (13 April 2021). "Party leaders go head-to-head in STV's live election debate". STV News. Archived from the original on 14 April 2021. Retrieved 14 April 2021.
84. ^ a b "LIVE: Scottish political leaders face off in student-led election debate". The National. 20 April 2021. Archived from the original on 20 April 2021. Retrieved 20 April 2021.
85. ^ "Scottish Conservative leader Douglas Ross claims independence threatens our coronavirus recovery". Clyde 2. 4 April 2021. Archived from the original on 4 April 2021. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
86. ^ "Scottish Parliament Election 2021: The Leaders Phone In". Clyde 2. Archived from the original on 1 April 2021. Retrieved 1 April 2021.
87. ^ Hutcheon, Paul (9 April 2021). "Holyrood election campaigning suspended following death of Prince Philip". Daily Record. Archived from the original on 9 April 2021. Retrieved 9 April 2021.
88. ^ Cacace, Fabiana (9 April 2021). "Parties suspend election campaigns after Prince Philip's death". STV News. Archived from the original on 9 April 2021. Retrieved 9 April 2021.
89. ^ "Scottish election 2021: Campaigning suspended after death of Duke of Edinburgh". BBC News. 9 April 2021. Archived from the original on 9 April 2021. Retrieved 9 April 2021.
90. ^ "Election campaigns to resume after duke's death". BBC News. 11 April 2021. Archived from the original on 10 April 2021. Retrieved 11 April 2021.
91. ^ Quitian, Sergi (29 March 2021). "When is the first Scottish Parliament election TV debate and where to watch". Daily Record. Archived from the original on 26 March 2021. Retrieved 2 April 2021.
92. ^ "STV announce line up for leaders' debate and election coverage". Times News Express. 6 April 2021. Archived from the original on 7 May 2021. Retrieved 6 April 2021.
93. ^ @bbcquestiontime (21 April 2021). "On the Question Time panel tomorrow, Fiona is joined by @KeithBrownSNP, @Douglas4Moray, @AnasSarwar, @lornaslater and @willie_rennie. With a virtual audience from Edinburgh, join us tomorrow at 10:45pm on @BBCOne. #bbcqt" (Tweet). Retrieved 22 April 2021 – via Twitter.
94. ^ @channel4news (22 April 2021). "Channel 4 News is to host the first UK wide televised debate of Scotland's main party leaders. The 45-minute head-to-head will take place in Glasgow on Tuesday 27 April 2021 at 7pm ahead of the Scottish Parliament election on 6 May – presented by @krishgm" (Tweet). Retrieved 22 April 2021 – via Twitter.
95. ^ "BBC U-turn and cancel live audience participation in final leaders' debate". The National. 23 April 2021. Archived from the original on 23 April 2021. Retrieved 23 April 2021.
96. ^ Paterson, Kirsteen (9 May 2021). "Small parties and independents big losers in Scottish elections". The National. Retrieved 10 May 2021.
97. ^ "Scottish Election: SNP squeezed as border region bucks trend". ITV News. 9 May 2021. Retrieved 4 October 2021.
98. ^ Nutt, Kathleen (7 May 2021). "Scottish election: Blow for Labour as it fails to take Rutherglen target seat". The National.
99. ^ a b Paton, Craig (8 May 2021). "Minister loses seat after failing in bid to oust Tory". Evening Standard. Archived from the original on 10 May 2021. Retrieved 10 May 2021.
100. ^ Pengilly, Calam (11 May 2021). "SNP take Ayr and party holds on to CCDV seat". Ayr Advertiser. Archived from the original on 2 February 2022. Retrieved 2 February 2022.
101. ^ Paterson, Kirsteen (8 May 2021). "Andy Wightman loses in Highlands & Islands - but Douglas Ross gets in". The National. Archived from the original on 8 May 2021. Retrieved 10 May 2021.
102. ^ PA Media (8 May 2021). "SNP wins election, but just one seat short of overall majority". STV News. Archived from the original on 23 May 2021. Retrieved 26 August 2021.
103. ^ Brooks, Libby (9 May 2021). "While Salmond tanked, pro-unionist tactical voting made its mark in Scotland". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 17 August 2021. Retrieved 26 August 2021.
104. ^ McDonald, Andrew (8 May 2021). "Pro-union tactical voting frustrates Scotland's nationalists". Politico. Archived from the original on 26 August 2021. Retrieved 26 August 2021.
105. ^ Curtice, John (10 May 2021). "Scottish election 2021: How the SNP was denied a majority by tactical voting – Professor John Curtice". The Scotsman. Archived from the original on 19 October 2021. Retrieved 26 August 2021.
106. ^ Stewart-Robertson, Tristan (14 May 2021). "Tories voting tactically for Labour kept the SNP out, says Giugliano". Dumbarton and Vale of Leven Reporter. Archived from the original on 27 August 2021. Retrieved 27 August 2021.
107. ^ O'Toole, Emer (11 May 2021). "Did Unionist tactical voting ads stop SNP from winning key target seats?". The National. Archived from the original on 26 August 2021. Retrieved 26 August 2021.
108. ^ a b Carrell, Severin; Brooks, Libby; McIntyre, Niamh (5 May 2021). "Pro-UK activists spend heavily to head off SNP majority at Holyrood". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 26 August 2021. Retrieved 26 August 2021.
109. ^ Christie, Niall (12 May 2021). "Far-right group used Scottish Greens' branding". Morning Star. Archived from the original on 26 August 2021. Retrieved 26 August 2021.
110. ^ Duffy, Judith (13 June 2021). "Study reveals scale of anti-SNP tactical voting at Holyrood election". The National. Archived from the original on 27 August 2021. Retrieved 27 August 2021.
111. ^ Garton, Abbi (19 May 2021). "Women and younger people backed SNP in 2021 election, top pollster says". The National. Retrieved 24 January 2023. "Professor John Curtice analysed the demographic breakdown of the constituency vote in the election from data contained in a Savanta ComRes post-election poll."
112. ^ Paterson, Kirsteen (2 February 2022). "Revealed: What each Scottish Parliament seat cost parties in 2021". The National. Archived from the original on 2 February 2022. Retrieved 2 February 2022.
113. ^ "Campaign spending of £250,000 or less at 2021 Scottish Parliament election". Electoral Commission. 2 November 2021. Retrieved 28 June 2022.
114. ^ "Meeting of the Parliament (Hybrid) 18 May 2021". Scottish Parliament. Archived from the original on 19 May 2021. Retrieved 19 May 2021.
115. ^ "Nicola Sturgeon re-elected as Scotland's first minister". BBC News. 18 May 2021. Archived from the original on 10 October 2021. Retrieved 18 May 2021.
116. ^ "Official Report". Scottish Parliament. 20 May 2020. Archived from the original on 11 August 2021. Retrieved 11 August 2021.
117. ^ Davidson, Gina (3 August 2021). "SNP and Scottish Greens 'close to deal' on co-operation". The Scotsman. Archived from the original on 3 August 2021. Retrieved 4 August 2021.
118. ^ "DRAFT COOPERATION AGREEMENT between THE SCOTTISH GOVERNMENT and THE SCOTTISH GREEN PARTY PARLIAMENTARY GROUP" (PDF). gov.scot. 20 August 2021. Archived (PDF) from the original on 22 August 2021. Retrieved 22 August 2021.
119. ^ "Scottish Greens co-leaders Harvie and Slater to be given minister roles". BBC News. 26 August 2021. Archived from the original on 26 August 2021. Retrieved 26 August 2021.
120. ^ Ramsay, Adam (23 August 2021). "Scottish Green members hold unprecedented power. How will they use it?". openDemocracy. Archived from the original on 26 August 2021. Retrieved 27 August 2021.
121. ^ Campbell, Glenn (28 August 2021). "Scottish Greens back historic government deal". BBC News. Archived from the original on 27 August 2021. Retrieved 28 August 2021.

## External links

[edit]

* Election 2021 Archived 23 April 2021 at the Wayback Machine (on the Scottish Parliament website)

* v
* t
* e

Elections and referendums in Scotland

Scottish Parliament|

* 1999
* 2003
* 2007
* 2011
* 2016
* 2021
* Next

Parliament of Scotland|

* 1612
* 1617
* 1621
* 1628
* 1639
* 1644
* 1648
* 1661
* 1669
* 1681
* 1685
* 1702

Convention of Estates|

* 1617
* 1625
* 1630
* 1643
* 1665
* 1667
* 1678
* 1689

UK Parliament|

* 1801 co-option
* 1802
* 1806
* 1807
* 1812
* 1818
* 1820
* 1826
* 1830
* 1831
* 1832
* 1835
* 1837
* 1841
* 1847
* 1852
* 1857
* 1859
* 1865
* 1868
* 1874
* 1880
* 1885
* 1886
* 1892
* 1895
* 1900
* 1906
* 1910 (Jan)
* 1910 (Dec)
* 1918
* 1922
* 1923
* 1924
* 1929
* 1931
* 1935
* 1945
* 1950
* 1951
* 1955
* 1959
* 1964
* 1966
* 1970
* 1974 (Feb)
* 1974 (Oct)
* 1979
* 1983
* 1987
* 1992
* 1997
* 2001
* 2005
* 2010
* 2015
* 2017
* 2019
* 2024
* Next

Local elections|

* 1945
* 1946
* 1947
* 1948
* 1949
* 1950
* 1951
* 1952
* 1953
* 1954
* 1955
* 1956
* 1957
* 1958
* 1959
* 1960
* 1961
* 1962
* 1963
* 1964
* 1965
* 1966
* 1967
* 1968
* 1969
* 1970
* 1971
* 1972
* 1973
* 1974
* 1977
* 1978
* 1980
* 1982
* 1984
* 1986
* 1988
* 1990
* 1992
* 1994
* 1995
* 1999
* 2003
* 2007
* 2012
* 2017
* 2022

Referendums|

* 1979
* 1997
* 2014

Scotland portal

* v
* t
* e

2021 Scottish Parliament election

* Incumbent First Minister: Nicola Sturgeon (SNP)
* Subsequent First Minister: Nicola Sturgeon (SNP)

* Nicola Sturgeon (SNP)
* Douglas Ross (Conservative)
* Anas Sarwar (Labour)
* Lorna Slater/Patrick Harvie (Green)
* Willie Rennie (Liberal Democrats)

* Opinion polling
* Results
* Members elected

*[Ref.]: References
*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template