# 2007 North Somerset Council election

The 2007 North Somerset Council election took place on 3 May 2007 to elect members of North Somerset Unitary Council in Somerset, England. The whole council was up for election and the Conservative Party gained overall control of the council from no overall control.

## Background

Since the 2003 election the council was controlled by a coalition between the Liberal Democrat and Labour parties. Many of the swing wards on the council were in Weston-super-Mare, with a major issue in the town being the derelict Tropicana lido. The high number of pensioners in the town and lack of things for young people to do in the new estates were also factors in the area.

## Election result

The results saw the Conservatives win a majority with 43 of the 61 seats contested. Both the Liberal Democrat and Labour parties suffered heavy losses, with the defeated councillors including Liberal Democrat Isabel Cummings in Yatton after 15 years on the council and the Labour couple Derek and Muriel Kraft.
The election in Weston-super-Mare North Worle ward was delayed after the death of the Liberal Democrat leader of the council Alan Hockridge, meaning it was not held at the same as the other seats. The postponed election in North Worle as held on 7 June and all 3 seats were won by the Conservatives taking the party to 46 seats.
North Somerset Local Election Result 2007 :
| Party | Seats | Gains | Losses | Net gain/loss | Seats % | Votes % | Votes | +/− |
| Conservative | 43 | 21 | 3 | +18 | 74.1 | 48.2 | 53,173 | +10.6% |
| Independent | 6 | 4 | 1 | +3 | 10.3 | 6.9 | 7,594 | +3.2% |
| Liberal Democrats | 5 | 0 | 15 | -15 | 8.6 | 29.2 | 32,243 | -8.8% |
| Labour | 3 | 0 | 6 | -6 | 5.2 | 13.5 | 14,859 | -6.5% |
| Green | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.7 | 1.6 | 1,739 | +1.0% |
| UKIP | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.7 | 735 | +0.6% |

## Ward results

Backwell (2) :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Independent | Tom Collinson | 1,283 | |
| | Independent | Karen Barclay | 912 | |
| | Conservative | Peter Burden | 593 | |
| | Conservative | Roger Theis | 523 | |
| | Liberal Democrats | David Neale | 295 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 3,606 | 45.1 |
| | Independent gain from Conservative | Independent gain from Conservative | Swing | |
| | Independent gain from Conservative | Independent gain from Conservative | Swing | |
Banwell & Winscombe (3) :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Conservative | Ann Harley | 2,020 | |
| | Conservative | Tony Lake | 1,966 | |
| | Conservative | Tim Marter | 1,830 | |
| | Liberal Democrats | Amanda Brading | 804 | |
| | Liberal Democrats | Mark Lewis | 583 | |
| | Liberal Democrats | Raymond Armstrong | 575 | |
| | Labour | Ludovic Janas | 274 | |
| | Labour | Tony Roberts | 264 | |
| | Labour | Andrew Hughes | 258 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 8,574 | 37.8 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | |
Blagdon & Churchill :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Liz Wells | 882 | 65.1 | +7.3 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Anthony Hughes | 379 | 28.0 | −5.4 |
| | Labour | Stanley Banks | 93 | 6.9 | −1.9 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 503 | 37.1 | +12.7 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 1,354 | 44.6 | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
Clevedon Central :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Stanley Vyce | 357 | 45.1 | +15.3 |
| | Liberal Democrats | John Vanderplank | 245 | 31.0 | +11.9 |
| | Labour | Paul Sterling | 189 | 23.9 | −27.2 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 112 | 14.2 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 791 | 33.5 | |
| | Conservative gain from Labour | Conservative gain from Labour | Swing | | |
Clevedon East :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Independent | David Shopland | 557 | 60.4 | +12.7 |
| | Conservative | Jon Middleton | 231 | 25.1 | +0.8 |
| | Labour | Joe Norman | 134 | 14.5 | +2.0 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 326 | 35.4 | +12.0 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 922 | 35.1 | |
| | Independent hold | Independent hold | Swing | | |
Clevedon North :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Robert Garner | 422 | 45.3 | −13.1 |
| | Independent | Carole Wring | 378 | 40.6 | +40.6 |
| | Green | John Brenton | 132 | 14.2 | +14.2 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 44 | 4.7 | −26.7 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 932 | 42.5 | |
| | Conservative gain from Independent | Conservative gain from Independent | Swing | | |
Clevedon South :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Anne-Marie Gregory | 322 | 39.0 | +12.1 |
| | Labour | Alan Cotton | 292 | 35.4 | −4.0 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Graham Watkins | 212 | 25.7 | −8.0 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 30 | 3.6 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 826 | 35.6 | |
| | Conservative gain from Labour | Conservative gain from Labour | Swing | | |
Clevedon Walton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | John Norton-Sealey | 787 | 64.6 | +12.2 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Jack Dagnall | 431 | 35.4 | −12.2 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 356 | 29.2 | +24.3 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 1,218 | 51.5 | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
Clevedon West :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Christopher Blades | 580 | 54.7 | +26.5 |
| | Labour | Chanel Stevens | 481 | 45.3 | −0.6 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 99 | 9.3 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 1,061 | 43.6 | |
| | Conservative gain from Labour | Conservative gain from Labour | Swing | | |
Clevedon Yeo :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Colin Hall | 432 | 58.1 | +12.4 |
| | Labour | Alistair Lindsay | 312 | 41.9 | +10.6 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 120 | 16.1 | +1.6 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 744 | 30.8 | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
Congresbury :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Green | Tom Leimdorfer | 822 | 65.3 | +6.6 |
| | Conservative | Christine Davis | 401 | 31.9 | −9.4 |
| | Independent | Michael Palmer | 36 | 2.9 | +2.9 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 421 | 33.4 | +16.1 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 1,259 | 46.7 | |
| | Green hold | Green hold | Swing | | |
Easton-in-Gordano :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Carl Francis-Pester | 724 | 72.3 | +10.9 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Mac Jordan | 277 | 27.7 | +4.8 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 447 | 44.7 | +6.2 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 1,001 | 44.8 | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
Gordano :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Nigel Ashton | 819 | 76.3 | +9.2 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Evelyn Elworthy | 254 | 23.7 | +2.9 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 565 | 52.7 | +6.4 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 1,073 | 47.0 | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
Hutton & Locking (2) :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Conservative | Elfan Rees | 1,330 | |
| | Conservative | Ian Peddlesden | 1,325 | |
| | Liberal Democrats | Andrew Nisbet | 398 | |
| | Liberal Democrats | Charles Havill | 385 | |
| | Labour | Christopher Belton-Reed | 198 | |
| | Labour | Timothy Taylor | 184 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 3,820 | 39.5 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | |
Kewstoke :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Ian Porter | 607 | 63.2 | +10.5 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Peter Hardaway | 268 | 27.9 | −3.8 |
| | Labour | Jacqueline Scholes | 85 | 8.9 | −6.6 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 339 | 35.3 | +14.3 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 960 | 37.6 | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
Nailsea East (2) :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Liberal Democrats | Andy Cole | 1,188 | |
| | Conservative | Jan Barber | 1,136 | |
| | Conservative | Bob Coleman | 985 | |
| | Liberal Democrats | Alan Clarke | 980 | |
| | Labour | Patrick Hearn | 140 | |
| | Labour | Gaile Blake | 118 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 4,547 | 44.6 |
| | Liberal Democrats hold | Liberal Democrats hold | Swing | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | |
Nailsea North and West (3) :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Conservative | Jeremy Blatchford | 1,476 | |
| | Conservative | Mary Blatchford | 1,390 | |
| | Conservative | Anne Kemp | 1,376 | |
| | Liberal Democrats | Bob Steadman | 1,041 | |
| | Liberal Democrats | Robin Bell | 1,032 | |
| | Liberal Democrats | James Tonkin | 1,029 | |
| | Labour | Christopher Smart | 312 | |
| | Labour | Ben Johnson | 298 | |
| | Labour | Tony Probert | 288 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 8,242 | 38.9 |
| | Conservative gain from Liberal Democrats | Conservative gain from Liberal Democrats | Swing | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | |
| | Conservative gain from Liberal Democrats | Conservative gain from Liberal Democrats | Swing | |
Pill :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Independent | Nan Kirsen | 809 | 79.9 | +79.9 |
| | Labour | Patricia Gardener | 203 | 20.1 | −41.1 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 606 | 59.9 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 1,012 | 38.0 | |
| | Independent hold | Independent hold | Swing | | |
Portishead Central :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Reyna Knight | 313 | 38.4 | +3.2 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Andy Wright | 243 | 29.8 | −11.5 |
| | Independent | Mike Wilks | 200 | 24.5 | +24.5 |
| | Labour | Lynne Buckner | 60 | 7.4 | −16.1 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 70 | 8.6 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 816 | 34.6 | |
| | Conservative gain from Liberal Democrats | Conservative gain from Liberal Democrats | Swing | | |
Portishead Coast :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | David Pasley | 776 | 65.0 | +5.5 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Rod Hoare | 304 | 25.5 | −15.0 |
| | Labour | Roger Whitfield | 113 | 9.5 | +9.5 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 472 | 39.6 | +20.6 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 1,193 | 49.4 | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
Portishead East :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Arthur Terry | 687 | 56.5 | +17.1 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Phil Palmer | 357 | 29.4 | −2.2 |
| | Labour | Terry Lester | 172 | 14.1 | −14.9 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 330 | 27.1 | +19.2 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 1,216 | 37.6 | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
Portishead Redcliffe Bay :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Felicity Baker | 688 | 52.0 | −8.2 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Jean Lord | 572 | 43.3 | +3.5 |
| | Labour | David McKeag | 62 | 4.7 | +4.7 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 116 | 8.8 | −11.6 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 1,322 | 49.8 | |
| | Conservative gain from Liberal Democrats | Conservative gain from Liberal Democrats | Swing | | |
Portishead South & North Weston :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Alan McMurray | 538 | 59.8 | +28.0 |
| | Liberal Democrats | John Clark | 361 | 40.2 | −1.2 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 177 | 19.7 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 899 | 38.5 | |
| | Conservative gain from Liberal Democrats | Conservative gain from Liberal Democrats | Swing | | |
Portishead West :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | David Jolley | 752 | 63.8 | +45.7 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Sue Mason | 345 | 29.3 | +29.3 |
| | Labour | Kirsty Gardener | 81 | 6.9 | +6.9 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 407 | 34.6 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 1,178 | 45.1 | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
Weston-super-Mare Central (2) :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Conservative | Mike Kellaway-Marriott | 486 | |
| | Conservative | Keith Morris | 468 | |
| | Liberal Democrats | John Crockford-Hawley | 431 | |
| | Liberal Democrats | Jeffrey Alen | 374 | |
| | Independent | Richard Nightingale | 370 | |
| | Independent | John Carter | 252 | |
| | Labour | Michael Lyall | 177 | |
| | Labour | Frederick Roberts | 174 | |
| | Independent | Colin Granner | 144 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 2,876 | 33.0 |
| | Conservative gain from Liberal Democrats | Conservative gain from Liberal Democrats | Swing | |
| | Conservative gain from Liberal Democrats | Conservative gain from Liberal Democrats | Swing | |
Weston-super-Mare Clarence & Uphill (3) :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Conservative | Peter Bryant | 1,800 | |
| | Conservative | Michael Roe | 1,777 | |
| | Conservative | Clive Webb | 1,708 | |
| | Liberal Democrats | Paula Howell | 836 | |
| | Liberal Democrats | Anthony Helliker | 672 | |
| | Liberal Democrats | June How | 670 | |
| | Labour | Jose Bateman | 310 | |
| | Labour | Stephen Varney | 295 | |
| | Labour | Alison Yianni | 280 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 8,348 | 40.5 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | |
Weston-super-Mare East (3) :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Conservative | Dawn Payne | 1,497 | |
| | Conservative | William Collins | 1,345 | |
| | Conservative | Robert Cleland | 1,306 | |
| | Labour | Derek Kraft | 963 | |
| | Labour | Richard Tucker | 951 | |
| | Labour | Muriel Kraft | 914 | |
| | Liberal Democrats | Gary Longmore | 529 | |
| | Liberal Democrats | Edward Mason | 526 | |
| | Liberal Democrats | Richard Oddy | 493 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 8,524 | 31.5 |
| | Conservative gain from Labour | Conservative gain from Labour | Swing | |
| | Conservative gain from Labour | Conservative gain from Labour | Swing | |
| | Conservative gain from Labour | Conservative gain from Labour | Swing | |
Weston-super-Mare Milton & Old Worle (3) :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Conservative | Roz Willis | 1,630 | |
| | Conservative | Lisa Pilgrim | 1,537 | |
| | Conservative | Sue Creasey | 1,534 | |
| | Liberal Democrats | Astra Brand | 904 | |
| | Liberal Democrats | Jenny Gosden | 889 | |
| | Liberal Democrats | Norman Sycamore | 745 | |
| | UKIP | Steven Pearse-Danker | 454 | |
| | Labour | Bee Edmunds | 367 | |
| | Labour | Adrian Tucker | 362 | |
| | Labour | Michael O'Regan | 293 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 8,715 | 41.8 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | |
| | Conservative gain from Liberal Democrats | Conservative gain from Liberal Democrats | Swing | |
| | Conservative gain from Liberal Democrats | Conservative gain from Liberal Democrats | Swing | |
Weston-super-Mare South (3) :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Labour | Ian Parker | 1,039 | |
| | Labour | Bob Bateman | 958 | |
| | Labour | Debbie Stone | 860 | |
| | Liberal Democrats | Mari Owens | 508 | |
| | Liberal Democrats | Zena Canniford | 455 | |
| | Conservative | Michael Dolley | 440 | |
| | Liberal Democrats | Valerie Field | 409 | |
| | Independent | Adam Nash | 284 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 4,953 | 27.4 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | |
Weston-super-Mare South Worle (3) :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Liberal Democrats | Gully Hayer | 1,138 | |
| | Liberal Democrats | Christopher Howell | 1,017 | |
| | Liberal Democrats | Edward Keating | 970 | |
| | Conservative | John Wiltshire | 814 | |
| | Conservative | John Ley-Morgan | 808 | |
| | Labour | Paul Francis | 531 | |
| | Labour | Simon Arlidge | 482 | |
| | Labour | Simon Stokes | 460 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 6,220 | 27.8 |
| | Liberal Democrats hold | Liberal Democrats hold | Swing | |
| | Liberal Democrats hold | Liberal Democrats hold | Swing | |
| | Liberal Democrats hold | Liberal Democrats hold | Swing | |
Weston-super-Mare West (3) :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Conservative | Andrew Horler | 1,353 | |
| | Conservative | Chris Kimitri | 1,265 | |
| | Conservative | Dawn Parry | 1,256 | |
| | Liberal Democrats | Mark Canniford | 1,254 | |
| | Liberal Democrats | Mike Bell | 1,250 | |
| | Liberal Democrats | Robert Payne | 1,053 | |
| | UKIP | Paul Spencer | 281 | |
| | Labour | Robert Craig | 208 | |
| | Labour | Peter Williams | 186 | |
| | Labour | David Roxburgh | 166 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 8,272 | 42.3 |
| | Conservative gain from Liberal Democrats | Conservative gain from Liberal Democrats | Swing | |
| | Conservative gain from Liberal Democrats | Conservative gain from Liberal Democrats | Swing | |
| | Conservative gain from Liberal Democrats | Conservative gain from Liberal Democrats | Swing | |
Winford :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Independent | Hugh Gregor | 534 | 54.1 | +54.1 |
| | Conservative | Anita Heappey | 453 | 45.9 | −11.7 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 81 | 8.2 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 987 | 41.4 | |
| | Independent gain from Conservative | Independent gain from Conservative | Swing | | |
Wraxall & Long Ashton (2) :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Conservative | Bob Cook | 1,504 | |
| | Conservative | Howard Roberts | 1,181 | |
| | Liberal Democrats | Angela Neale | 1,101 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 3,786 | 43.3 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | |
Wrington :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal Democrats | Deborah Yamanaka | 578 | 45.0 | −22.8 |
| | Conservative | Peter Ellis | 421 | 32.8 | +0.6 |
| | Independent | Hilary Burn | 286 | 22.3 | +22.3 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 157 | 12.2 | −23.4 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 1,285 | 54.3 | |
| | Liberal Democrats hold | Liberal Democrats hold | Swing | | |
Yatton (3) :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Independent | Tony Moulin | 1,549 | |
| | Conservative | Jill Iles | 1,227 | |
| | Conservative | Ericka Blades | 1,095 | |
| | Liberal Democrats | Isabel Cummings | 1,052 | |
| | Liberal Democrats | Wendy Griggs | 958 | |
| | Liberal Democrats | Peter Kehoe | 873 | |
| | Green | Juley Howard | 785 | |
| | Labour | Bryan Moore | 272 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 7,811 | 45.2 |
| | Independent gain from Liberal Democrats | Independent gain from Liberal Democrats | Swing | |
| | Conservative gain from Liberal Democrats | Conservative gain from Liberal Democrats | Swing | |
| | Conservative gain from Liberal Democrats | Conservative gain from Liberal Democrats | Swing | |