# 2011 Swale Borough Council election

The 2011 Swale Borough Council election took place on 5 May 2011 to elect members of Swale Borough Council in Kent, England. The whole council was up for election and the Conservative Party stayed in overall control of the council.

## Background

For the 2011 election Swale switched to having the whole council elected every four years, from the previous system where a third of the seats were elected each year, followed by one year without an election. The decision was taken by the council in March 2010, after a consultation produced 162 responses in favour of the change and 136 responses against changing. As a result, all 47 seats on the council were contested with over 120 candidates standing at election.

## Election result

The Conservatives remained in control of the council with 32 of the 47 seats, after a net loss of 1 seat. Labour increased to 13 councillors, the Liberal Democrats were reduced to 1 seat and the only independent councillor retained her seat.
Labour's Mark Ellen regained a seat in Sheerness East that he had lost at the 2010 election, while in Milton Regis Labour defeated the leader of the Liberal Democrat group Elvie Lowe who had represented the ward for 24 years. However the Conservatives took a seat from Labour in St Michaels ward, where the Conservative deputy mayoress Sylvia Bennett gained a seat on the council.
In West Downs the only independent councillor, Monique Bonney, held her seat defeating Conservative county councillor Mike Whiting by 41 votes. Meanwhile, the closest result came in Murston where both the Conservative and Liberal Democrat councillors, Ed Gent and Dave Banks, took 420 votes after six recounts. Conservative Ed Gent took the seat after his name was pulled out of a hat and he was therefore given one extra vote. This meant Mike Henderson was the only Liberal Democrat to be elected after he held his seat in Davington Priory.
Following the election Roger Truelove became the new leader of the Labour group, replacing the leader for the previous 15 years Angela Harrison. The only Liberal Democrat councillor, Mike Henderson, meanwhile joined with the independent councillor Monique Bonney in the independent group on the council to ensure they both got positions on council committees.
Swale local election result 2011 :
| Party | Seats | Gains | Losses | Net gain/loss | Seats % | Votes % | Votes | +/− |
| Conservative | 32 | 1 | 2 | -1 | 68.1 | 50.4 | 33,548 | +0.2% |
| Labour | 13 | 4 | 1 | +3 | 27.7 | 34.8 | 23,188 | +5.3% |
| Liberal Democrats | 1 | 0 | 2 | -2 | 2.1 | 6.8 | 4,520 | -9.3% |
| Independent | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2.1 | 1.0 | 635 | +1.0% |
| UKIP | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5.5 | 3,683 | +1.8% |
| Green | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.2 | 815 | +0.6% |
| Monster Raving Loony | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.3 | 213 | +0.3% |

## Ward results

Abbey (2 seats) :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Bryan Mulhern | 759 | | |
| | Conservative | Anita Walker | 682 | | |
| | Labour | Trevor Payne | 626 | | |
| | Labour | Fran Rehal | 536 | | |
| | Green | Gary Miller | 322 | | |
| | Liberal Democrats | David Evans | 191 | | |
| | Liberal Democrats | Richard Williams | 154 | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 3,270 | 40.4 | −23.1 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
Borden :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Nicholas Hampshire | 506 | 50.9 | −2.8 |
| | UKIP | Michael Baldock | 361 | 36.3 | +36.3 |
| | Labour | Matthew Partridge | 127 | 12.8 | −0.3 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 145 | 14.6 | −5.9 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 994 | 51.7 | +9.4 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
Boughton and Courtenay (2 seats) :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Andrew Bowles | 1,291 | | |
| | Conservative | George Bobbin | 1,187 | | |
| | Labour | Ash Rehal | 586 | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 3,064 | 49.1 | +11.7 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
Chalkwell (2 seats) :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Roger Truelove | 900 | | |
| | Labour | Ghlin Whelan | 760 | | |
| | Conservative | Clive Duncan | 316 | | |
| | Conservative | Sandra Warham | 272 | | |
| | UKIP | Alison Donkin | 147 | | |
| | Liberal Democrats | Anthea Spurling | 141 | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 2,536 | 39.8 | −23.8 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
Davington Priory :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal Democrats | Michael Henderson | 360 | 43.8 | −14.4 |
| | Conservative | Andy Culham | 256 | 31.2 | +3.6 |
| | Labour | Caroline MacDonald | 145 | 17.7 | +3.5 |
| | Green | Tim Valentine | 60 | 7.3 | +7.3 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 104 | 12.7 | −17.9 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 821 | 44.1 | −0.2 |
| | Liberal Democrats hold | Liberal Democrats hold | Swing | | |
East Downs :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Colin Prescott | 731 | 65.4 | −12.2 |
| | Labour | Barry Hefferon | 299 | 26.8 | +4.4 |
| | UKIP | Nadine McDermott | 87 | 7.8 | +7.8 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 432 | 38.7 | −16.5 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 1,117 | 53.3 | +11.9 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
Grove (2 seats) :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Duncan Dewar-Whalley | 792 | | |
| | Conservative | Gareth Randall | 781 | | |
| | Labour | Richard Raycraft | 488 | | |
| | Labour | Peter Wilson | 422 | | |
| | UKIP | Ian Davison | 418 | | |
| | Liberal Democrats | Bernie Lowe | 226 | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 3,127 | 38.5 | −25.2 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
Hartlip, Newington and Upchurch (2 seats) :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Gerry Lewin | 1,031 | | |
| | Conservative | John Wright | 836 | | |
| | UKIP | Richard Palmer | 509 | | |
| | Labour | James Graham | 418 | | |
| | Labour | David Walker | 339 | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 3,133 | 45.2 | −27.3 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
Iwade and Lower Halstow :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Ben Stokes | 712 | 52.6 | −5.9 |
| | Labour | Janet Gregory | 509 | 37.6 | +21.6 |
| | UKIP | Christopher Trafford | 77 | 5.7 | +5.7 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Peter Springham | 56 | 4.1 | −21.3 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 203 | 15.0 | −18.1 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 1,354 | 44.9 | +10.1 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
Kemsley (2 seats) :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Brenda Simpson | 830 | | |
| | Conservative | Sue Gent | 797 | | |
| | Labour | Tony Phillips | 461 | | |
| | Labour | Bradley Wise | 397 | | |
| | UKIP | Peter Paige | 230 | | |
| | Liberal Democrats | Mary Zeng | 122 | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 2,837 | 33.4 | −29.3 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
Leysdown and Warden :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Pat Sandle | 438 | 62.8 | +33.9 |
| | Labour | Matt Wheatcroft | 259 | 37.2 | +25.1 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 179 | 25.6 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 697 | 32.3 | −1.0 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
Milton Regis (2 seats) :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Adam Tolhurst | 527 | | |
| | Labour | Tony Winckless | 491 | | |
| | Liberal Democrats | Elvie Lowe | 353 | | |
| | Conservative | Margaret Bridge | 331 | | |
| | Conservative | Eileen Hodgson | 289 | | |
| | Liberal Democrats | David Spurling | 227 | | |
| | Monster Raving Loony | Sheikh Mihand | 42 | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 2,260 | 37.2 | +4.4 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
| | Labour gain from Liberal Democrats | Labour gain from Liberal Democrats | Swing | | |
Minster Cliffs (3 seats) :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Adrian Crowther | 1,148 | | |
| | Conservative | Ken Pugh | 1,057 | | |
| | Conservative | Andy Booth | 910 | | |
| | Labour | Jamie Bicknell | 533 | | |
| | Labour | Libby Tucker | 532 | | |
| | Labour | Mark Tucker | 484 | | |
| | UKIP | Maureen Morgan | 390 | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 5,054 | 38.5 | −26.0 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
Murston (2 seats) :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Nick Williams | 482 | | |
| | Conservative | Ed Gent | 421 | | |
| | Liberal Democrats | Dave Banks | 420 | | |
| | Labour | Paul Williams | 369 | | |
| | Liberal Democrats | Keith Nevols | 236 | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 1,928 | 32.3 | −24.0 |
| | Labour gain from Liberal Democrats | Labour gain from Liberal Democrats | Swing | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
Queenborough and Halfway (3 seats) :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Jackie Constable | 908 | | |
| | Conservative | Peter Marchington | 846 | | |
| | Labour | Mick Constable | 841 | | |
| | Conservative | Richard Darby | 812 | | |
| | Conservative | Mick Galvin | 754 | | |
| | Labour | Julian Stewart | 625 | | |
| | Liberal Democrats | Sandy Sims | 149 | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 4,935 | 36.9 | −23.9 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
Roman (2 seats) :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Mike Haywood | 752 | | |
| | Labour | Martin McCusker | 530 | | |
| | Conservative | Alan Blackley | 396 | | |
| | Conservative | Keith Ferrin | 279 | | |
| | UKIP | Aaron Donkin | 207 | | |
| | Liberal Democrats | Rosemary Madgwick | 119 | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 2,283 | 36.2 | −24.5 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
| | Labour gain from Conservative | Labour gain from Conservative | Swing | | |
Sheerness East (2 seats) :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Mark Ellen | 504 | | |
| | Labour | David Sargent | 453 | | |
| | Conservative | Chris Foulds | 376 | | |
| | Conservative | Emma Bridge | 360 | | |
| | Liberal Democrats | Colin Howe | 98 | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 1,791 | 31.8 | −19.1 |
| | Labour gain from Conservative | Labour gain from Conservative | Swing | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
Sheerness West (2 seats) :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Angela Harrison | 688 | | |
| | Labour | Stephen Worrall | 575 | | |
| | Conservative | David Wilson | 434 | | |
| | Liberal Democrats | David Kemp | 122 | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 1,829 | 32.1 | −19.4 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
Sheppey Central (3 seats) :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | June Garrad | 911 | | |
| | Conservative | John Morris | 871 | | |
| | Conservative | Lesley Ingham | 838 | | |
| | Labour | Alan Henley | 664 | | |
| | Labour | Pat Wiggins | 618 | | |
| | Labour | Ian Smart | 557 | | |
| | UKIP | Rosemary Donkin | 326 | | |
| | Monster Raving Loony | Mad Mike Young | 171 | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 4,956 | 32.0 | −37.7 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
St Anns :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Mike Cosgrove | 906 | | |
| | Conservative | John Coulter | 854 | | |
| | Labour | Judith Webb | 628 | | |
| | Labour | Paul Durkin | 627 | | |
| | Green | Tina Hagger | 224 | | |
| | Liberal Democrats | Brian Head | 154 | | |
| | Liberal Democrats | Richard Matthewman | 100 | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 3,493 | 47.5 | −21.7 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
St Michaels (2 seats) :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Derek Conway | 1,242 | | |
| | Conservative | Sylvia Bennett | 1,021 | | |
| | Labour | Shelley Cheesman | 521 | | |
| | Labour | Geraldine Feltham | 403 | | |
| | Liberal Democrats | Brenda Hammond | 317 | | |
| | UKIP | Stephen Trafford | 296 | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 3,800 | 44.0 | +7.1 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
| | Conservative gain from Labour | Conservative gain from Labour | Swing | | |
Teynham and Lynsted (2 seats) :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Lloyd Bowen | 940 | | |
| | Conservative | Rick Barnicott | 857 | | |
| | Labour | Ian Buxton | 470 | | |
| | Labour | Gillian Griffiths | 460 | | |
| | UKIP | James Nash | 163 | | |
| | Independent | Graeme William | 107 | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 2,997 | 42.4 | −23.9 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
Watling (2 seats) :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | David Simmons | 979 | | |
| | Conservative | Ted Wilcox | 941 | | |
| | Labour | Catherine Read | 430 | | |
| | Labour | Michael Wakeman | 364 | | |
| | Liberal Democrats | Ruth Cronk | 331 | | |
| | Liberal Democrats | Michael Wheeler | 329 | | |
| | Green | Huw Jones | 209 | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 3,583 | 47.6 | −22.1 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
West Downs :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Independent | Monique Bonney | 528 | 52.0 | −5.7 |
| | Conservative | Mike Whiting | 487 | 48.0 | +5.7 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 41 | 4.0 | −11.3 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 1,015 | 52.1 | +8.1 |
| | Independent hold | Independent hold | Swing | | |
Woodstock (2 seats) :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Alan Willicombe | 1,121 | | |
| | Conservative | Jean Willicombe | 950 | | |
| | UKIP | Lee Burgess | 472 | | |
| | Labour | Margaret Cooper | 441 | | |
| | Labour | Andrew Cooper | 439 | | |
| | Liberal Democrats | Ann McLean | 315 | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 3,738 | 53.7 | −24.4 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |

## By-elections between 2011 and 2015
### Kemsley

A by-election was held in Kemsley on 8 March 2012 after the death of Conservative councillor Brenda Simpson. The seat was held for the Conservatives by Mike Whiting with a majority of 72 votes over Labour candidate Richard Raycraft.
Kemsley by-election 8 March 2012 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Mike Whiting | 384 | 33.7 | −16.9 |
| | Labour | Richard Raycraft | 312 | 27.3 | −0.7 |
| | UKIP | Derek Carnell | 279 | 24.5 | +10.5 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Berick Tomes | 166 | 14.5 | +7.1 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 72 | 6.4 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 1,141 | 23.2 | −10.2 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |

### Sheppey Central

A by-election was held in Sheppey Central on 16 October 2014 following the death of Conservative councillor John Morris. The seat was gained for the UK Independence Party by David Jones with a majority of 507 votes over Conservative Tina Booth. David Jones became the second UK Independence Party councillor on Swale council after the defection of Adrian Crowther from the Conservatives in 2013.
Sheppey Central by-election 16 October 2014 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | UKIP | David Jones | 831 | 58.4 | +42.7 |
| | Conservative | Tina Booth | 324 | 22.8 | −21.2 |
| | Labour | Alan Henley | 240 | 16.9 | −15.2 |
| | Monster Raving Loony | "Mad" Mike Young | 27 | 1.9 | 0.0 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 507 | 35.6 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 1,422 | 19.9 | −12.1 |
| | UKIP gain from Conservative | UKIP gain from Conservative | Swing | | |