# 2012 Cannock Chase District Council election

Elections to Cannock Chase District Council took place on 3 May 2012 on the same day as other local elections in England. A total of 14 councillors were elected from 13 wards as a third of the council was up for election. This also included a by-election in the Hagley ward which filled a vacancy that had arisen since the previous election. There were no elections held in the Hednesford Green Heath or Rawnsley wards as those wards elect only two councillors in the other two years of the election cycle.
The Labour Party gained the council from no overall control and became the first party to win an outright majority since the election of 2002. Compared with the results of the 2008 election when these seats were last up for election, Labour almost doubled their vote share and gained many seats they had previously lost to the Conservatives along with seats in Rugeley that had always previously been held by the Liberal Democrats. Three candidates from the Liberal Party stood in the Hagley ward, including one sitting councillor who defected from the Liberal Democrats, but they were not successful. The swing from Conservative to Labour across the district was 16.7%, a record for a Cannock Chase District Council election. This was the last election in which a party gained more than 50% of the vote until the Conservatives' landslide victory in 2021.

## Results

Cannock Chase District Council election, 2012 :
| Party | Seats | Gains | Losses | Net gain/loss | Seats % | Votes % | Votes | +/− |
| Labour | 11 | 8 | 0 | 8 | 78.6 | 53.6 | 9,202 | 23.4 |
| Conservative | 3 | 1 | 5 | 4 | 21.4 | 31.3 | 5,376 | 13.0 |
| Liberal Democrats | 0 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 0.0 | 8.5 | 1,457 | 11.9 |
| Liberal | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 3.7 | 640 | N/A |
| Independent | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 2.0 | 335 | 0.9 |
| English Democrat | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 1.0 | 167 | N/A |

### Council Composition

Prior to the election, the composition of the council was:
| 16 | 13 | 9 | 2 | 1 |
| Labour | Conservative | Lib Dem | Lib | Vac |
After the election, the composition of the council was:
| 24 | 12 | 5 |
| Labour | Conservative | Lib Dem |

## Ward results

Vote share changes are based on the results achieved by parties in 2008 when these seats were last contested.

### Brereton and Ravenhill

Brereton and Ravenhill :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Alan Dudson | 611 | 45.4 | 23.2 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Ray Easton | 547 | 40.6 | 15.0 |
| | Conservative | Vic Hardcastle | 189 | 14.0 | 8.2 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 64 | 4.8 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 1,347 | 26.7 | |
| | Labour gain from Liberal Democrats | Labour gain from Liberal Democrats | Swing | 19.1 | |

### Cannock East

Cannock East :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Christine Mitchell | 982 | 74.2 | 23.8 |
| | Conservative | Susan Snape | 341 | 25.8 | 12.7 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 641 | 48.4 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 1,323 | 24.1 | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | 18.3 | |

### Cannock North

Cannock North :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Gordon Alcott | 992 | 80.9 | 20.9 |
| | Conservative | Phil Jones | 234 | 19.1 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 758 | 61.8 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 1,226 | 23.4 | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | 0.9 | |

### Cannock South

Cannock South :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Maureen Freeman | 882 | 66.6 | 22.5 |
| | Conservative | Steve Mate | 349 | 26.3 | 18.4 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Mark Green | 94 | 7.1 | 4.2 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 533 | 40.3 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 1,393 | 22.9 | |
| | Labour gain from Conservative | Labour gain from Conservative | Swing | 20.5 | |

### Cannock West

Cannock West :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Chris Anslow | 1,002 | 58.6 | 16.1 |
| | Labour | Paul Witton | 709 | 41.4 | 16.1 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 293 | 17.2 | 32.2 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 1,711 | 30.2 | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | 16.1 | |

### Etching Hill and the Heath

Etching Hill and the Heath :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Justin Johnson | 426 | 35.3 | 7.5 |
| | Labour | Charlotte Stubbs | 379 | 31.4 | 19.2 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Gary Grant | 310 | 25.7 | 19.3 |
| | Liberal | Diane Bennett ^ | 93 | 7.7 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 47 | 3.9 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 1,208 | 22.9 | |
| | Conservative gain from Liberal Democrats | Conservative gain from Liberal Democrats | Swing | 13.4 | |
^ Diane Bennett was the sitting councillor for the Cannock West ward and previously defected from the Conservatives to the Liberal Party.

### Hagley

There were two seats up for election in the Hagley ward due to the resignation of the sitting Labour councillor with the second placed candidate filling the remainder of his term.
Hagley :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Andy Lovell | 387 | 24.7 | 10.1 |
| | Labour | Brian Bottomer | 356 | 22.7 | 10.1 |
| | Liberal | Tony Williams ^ | 237 | 15.1 | N/A |
| | Liberal | Neil Stanley | 236 | 15.1 | N/A |
| | Conservative | Richard Alexander | 105 | 6.7 | 5.1 |
| | Conservative | Paul Blake | 95 | 6.1 | 5.0 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Pat Ansell | 79 | 5.0 | 20.2 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Les Grindey | 72 | 4.6 | 20.1 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 150 | 9.6 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 1,567 | 24.7 | |
| | Labour gain from Liberal Democrats | Labour gain from Liberal Democrats | Swing | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
^ The sitting councillor, Tony Williams, had previously defected from the Liberal Democrats to the Liberal Party.
Ward Summary :
| Party | Party | Votes | % Votes | ±% | Seats | Change |
| | Labour | 743 | 47.4 | 20.2 | 2 | 1 |
| | Liberal | 473 | 30.2 | N/A | 0 | |
| | Conservative | 200 | 12.8 | 10.1 | 0 | |
| | Liberal Democrats | 151 | 9.6 | 40.3 | 0 | 1 |
| Total Votes Cast | Total Votes Cast | 1,567 |

### Hawks Green

Hawks Green :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Ann Bernard | 410 | 40.0 | 29.3 |
| | Labour | John Preece | 376 | 36.7 | 16.7 |
| | English Democrat | Colin Marklew | 167 | 16.3 | N/A |
| | Liberal Democrats | Sarah Giles | 71 | 6.9 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 34 | 3.3 | 46.0 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 1,024 | 18.1 | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | 23.0 | |

### Heath Hayes East and Wimblebury

Heath Hayes East and Wimblebury :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Diane Todd | 707 | 61.4 | 35.8 |
| | Conservative | Alan Dean | 445 | 38.6 | 0.9 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 262 | 22.8 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 1,152 | 23.2 | |
| | Labour gain from Conservative | Labour gain from Conservative | Swing | 18.4 | |

### Hednesford North

Hednesford North :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Alan Pearson | 924 | 62.1 | 24.5 |
| | Conservative | Graham Burnett | 392 | 26.4 | 14.2 |
| | Independent | Ron Turville | 171 | 11.5 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 532 | 35.7 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 1,487 | 27.1 | |
| | Labour gain from Conservative | Labour gain from Conservative | Swing | 19.4 | |

### Hednesford South

Hednesford South :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Brian Gamble | 586 | 52.3 | 22.5 |
| | Conservative | John Burnett | 371 | 33.1 | 23.0 |
| | Independent | Ann Turville | 164 | 14.6 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 215 | 19.2 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 1,121 | 26.4 | |
| | Labour gain from Conservative | Labour gain from Conservative | Swing | 22.8 | |

### Norton Canes

Norton Canes :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Zaphne Stretton | 881 | 55.7 | 26.0 |
| | Conservative | John Beddows | 633 | 40.0 | 8.3 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Ken Ansell | 69 | 4.4 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 248 | 15.7 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 1,583 | 27.8 | |
| | Labour gain from Conservative | Labour gain from Conservative | Swing | 17.2 | |

### Western Springs

Western Springs :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Carl Bennett | 430 | 39.0 | 21.0 |
| | Conservative | Jim Bowater | 384 | 34.8 | 4.2 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Pat Williams | 215 | 19.5 | 23.5 |
| | Liberal | Becky Williams | 74 | 6.7 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 46 | 4.2 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 1,103 | 21.6 | |
| | Labour gain from Liberal Democrats | Labour gain from Liberal Democrats | Swing | 22.3 | |