# 2018 Southampton City Council election

Elections to Southampton City Council took place on Thursday 3 May 2018, alongside nationwide local elections, alongside other local elections across the country. The elections saw no changes in the overall composition of the council, however saw seats being exchanged. The Labour Party lost Bitterne, Millbrook and Peartree to the Conservative party while the Conservatives lost Freemantle, Portswood and Swaythling to Labour. This led to the Labour leader of the council, Simon Letts, and the leader of the Conservative group in the city, Jeremy Moulton, losing their seats.

## Background and Campaigning

In the lead up to the election, the BBC had summarised that the situation in Southampton for the Labour Party was incredibly precarious and one seat loss could deprive the party of a majority. They cited the Redbridge ward as a target for the main opposition the Conservatives, yet the Conservatives came third to the Southampton Independents candidate. Labour targeted the Conservative seats of Freemantle, Portswood and Swaythling, as well as the independent Coxford ward.
Labour made a commitment to building 1,000 homes in the city over five years, invest further in council services, build a modular home factory and create a Clean Air Zone for the city. The Conservative Party offered a series of policies to tackle air pollution and traffic in the city: suggesting two new railway stations in the city, one at St Mary's Stadium and one in Ocean Village potentially where the old Southampton Terminus Station was, allow free parking for electric vehicles and introducing more electric charge points in the city. The Liberal Democrats focused on the quality of roads within the city and was sceptical of the way resources were used by the Labour administration to tackle homelessness in the city.
The council had come under scrutiny for its decision to close the Kentish Road respite centre, which was due to budget cuts. Activists Lisa Stead and Amanda Guest, who have campaigned on the issue, stood in Bitterne and Shirely, respectively, with the 'Putting People First' group on the council. The Conservatives committed to fully reopening the respite centre.

## Election results
### Overall election result

As the council is elected in thirds, one councillor for each of the 16 wards are elected each year. All comparisons in seats and swing are to the corresponding Southampton Council election, 2014.
Southampton City Council election result 2018 :
| Party | Seats | Gains | Losses | Seats % | Votes % | Votes | +/− |
| Labour | 8 | 3 | 3 | 56.25 | 41.4 | 23,524 | 7.1 |
| Conservative | 7 | 3 | 3 | 37.50 | 36.5 | 20,733 | 5.4 |
| Independent | 1 | 0 | 0 | 6.25 | 5.3 | 3,045 | 1.8 |
| Liberal Democrats | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | 7.2 | 4,122 | 0.2 |
| Green | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | 5.2 | 2,989 | 0.2 |
| TUSC | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | 0.5 | 275 | 2.3 |
| UKIP | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | 0.1 | 92 | 15.0 |

### Changes in council composition

| Party | Party | Previous council | New council | +/- |
| | Labour | 25 | 25 | 0 |
| | Conservatives | 19 | 19 | 0 |
| | Putting People First | 3 | 3 | 0 |
| | Southampton Independents | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Total | Total | 48 | 48 | |
| Working majority | Working majority | 2 | 2 | |

## Ward results

Bargate :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Sarah Jane Bogle | 1,668 | 56.6 | +10.1 |
| | Conservative | Edward James Osmond | 827 | 28.1 | −3.3 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Ben Curd | 204 | 6.9 | +1.9 |
| | Green | Joe Cox | 184 | 6.2 | −1.8 |
| | TUSC | Diane Lesley Cook | 63 | 2.1 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 841 | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 2,957 | 24.7 | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
Bassett :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Beryl May Harris | 1,682 | 49.9 | +2.5 |
| | Labour | Sally Victoria Spicer | 965 | 28.6 | +5.4 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Richard Blackman | 464 | 13.8 | +2.2 |
| | Green | Alan Jack French | 263 | 7.8 | +1.1 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 717 | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 3,384 | 33.9 | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
Bevois :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Toqeer Ahmed Kataria | 2,260 | 73.3 | +4.1 |
| | Conservative | Diana June Galton | 417 | 13.5 | +1.7 |
| | Green | Ronald Nicholas Meldrum | 233 | 7.6 | − |
| | Liberal Democrats | Vijay Chopra | 173 | 5.6 | +1.5 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,843 | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 3,096 | 28.4 | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
Bitterne :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Terry Michael Streets | 1,528 | 49.5 | +21.4 |
| | Labour | Simon Letts | 1,233 | 39.9 | −1.3 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Olivia Caitlin Reed | 118 | 3.8 | −0.9 |
| | Green | Duncan Robert McMillan | 114 | 3.7 | −0.9 |
| | Independent | Lisa Joanne Stead | 96 | 3.1 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 295 | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 3,094 | 30.9 | |
| | Conservative gain from Labour | Conservative gain from Labour | Swing | | |
Bitterne Park :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Rob Harwood | 1,914 | 47.8 | +5.8 |
| | Labour | Ashley Mark Minto | 1,525 | 38.1 | +1.4 |
| | Green | Jenny Barnes | 297 | 7.4 | −2.9 |
| | Liberal Democrats | James Arnold Read | 266 | 6.6 | −1.2 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 389 | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 4,015 | 38.2 | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
Coxford :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Independent | Keith Morrell | 1,595 | 46.9 | +8.3 |
| | Labour | Matt Renyard | 958 | 28.2 | +1.1 |
| | Conservative | Trevor Glasspool | 559 | 16.5 | +4.9 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Peter Galton | 103 | 3.0 | −0.3 |
| | Green | Lucy Michelle Mundell | 101 | 3.0 | +0.9 |
| | Independent | Ricky Lambert | 82 | 2.4 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 637 | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 3,403 | | |
| | Independent gain from Labour | Independent gain from Labour | Swing | | |
Freemantle :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Steve Leggett | 1,704 | 45.0 | −2.3 |
| | Conservative | Jeremy Richard Moulton | 1,484 | 39.2 | +8.2 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Alexander Clifton-Melhuish | 217 | 5.7 | +0.5 |
| | Green | Lindsey Cherrie Hood | 185 | 4.9 | −2.6 |
| | Protest Against Brexit | Ed Thompson | 167 | 4.4 | N/A |
| | TUSC | Mike Marx | 28 | 0.7 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 220 | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 3,792 | 34.1 | |
| | Labour gain from Conservative | Labour gain from Conservative | Swing | | |
Harefield :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Val Laurent | 2,015 | 52.7 | +5.0 |
| | Labour | Alan Lloyd | 1,401 | 36.6 | +3.7 |
| | Independent | Peter Alexander Virgo | 148 | 3.9 | N/A |
| | Green | Chris Bluemel | 136 | 3.6 | −4.1 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Colin Stuart McDougall | 123 | 3.2 | −3.2 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 614 | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 3,833 | 36.7 | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
Millbrook :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Steven Graham Patrick Galton | 1,694 | 44.3 | +7.9 |
| | Labour | Mike Denness | 1,631 | 42.6 | +1.2 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Andrew Thomas Beal | 159 | 4.2 | −0.4 |
| | Green | Daniel Payne | 158 | 4.1 | −0.1 |
| | UKIP | Pearline Hingston | 92 | 2.4 | −9.7 |
| | Independent | Ed Edworthy | 91 | 2.4 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 63 | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 3,828 | 34.5 | |
| | Conservative gain from Labour | Conservative gain from Labour | Swing | | |
Peartree :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Tom Bell | 1,725 | 46.5 | +14.5 |
| | Labour | Catherine Rendle | 1,579 | 42.6 | −2.4 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Eileen Bowers | 219 | 5.9 | +1.0 |
| | Green | Nick Mabey | 142 | 3.8 | −0.6 |
| | TUSC | Declan Peter Clune | 44 | 1.2 | +0.6 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 146 | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 3,717 | 35.5 | |
| | Conservative gain from Labour | Conservative gain from Labour | Swing | | |
Portswood :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Lisa Mitchell | 1,587 | 42.4 | +9.1 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Adrian Ford | 923 | 24.7 | −0.1 |
| | Conservative | Paul Nicholas O'Neill | 851 | 22.8 | −2.8 |
| | Green | Katherine Barbour | 348 | 9.3 | −0.1 |
| | TUSC | Nick Chaffey | 31 | 0.8 | −0.2 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 664 | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 3,748 | 35.6 | |
| | Labour gain from Conservative | Labour gain from Conservative | Swing | | |
Redbridge :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Cathie McEwing | 1,181 | 38.5 | −7.9 |
| | Southampton Independents | Denise Mary Elizabeth Wyatt | 982 | 32.0 | +18.4 |
| | Conservative | Matthew Robert Cowley | 583 | 19.0 | +4.6 |
| | UKIP | Richard John Lyons | 124 | 4.0 | −15.4 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Simon Stokes | 99 | 3.2 | −0.1 |
| | Green | Christopher Richard James | 96 | 3.1 | +0.6 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 199 | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 3,075 | 28 | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
Shirley :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Hannah Coombs | 1,952 | 48.0 | +1.8 |
| | Conservative | Matt Turpin | 1,244 | 30.6 | +3.3 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Steven Hulbert | 440 | 10.8 | +4.8 |
| | Green | John Spottiswoode | 204 | 5.0 | +0.3 |
| | Independent | Amanda Jane Guest | 123 | 3.0 | N/A |
| | UKIP | Nick Ray | 107 | 2.6 | −7.5 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 708 | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 4,076 | 38.7 | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
Sholing :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Marley George Guthrie | 2,093 | 56.1 | +15.8 |
| | Labour | Andy Frampton | 1,323 | 35.5 | −0.4 |
| | Liberal Democrats | James Cappleman | 162 | 4.3 | +1.2 |
| | Green | Lyn Hazel Brayshaw | 153 | 4.1 | +0.8 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 770 | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 3,741 | 34.9 | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
Swaythling :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Lorna Fielker | 1,062 | 42.8 | −4.8 |
| | Conservative | Bob Painton | 956 | 38.5 | +9.7 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Paul Alexander Clarke | 275 | 11.1 | +2.6 |
| | Green | Angela Cotton | 191 | 7.7 | −2.3 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 106 | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 2,490 | 28.8 | |
| | Labour gain from Conservative | Labour gain from Conservative | Swing | | |
Woolston :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Christopher Hammond | 1,495 | 49.0 | −1.3 |
| | Conservative | Matthew Thomas Jones | 1,161 | 38.0 | +13.2 |
| | Green | Clive George Hillman | 148 | 4.8 | −2.8 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Samuel David Harris | 141 | 4.6 | −5.0 |
| | TUSC | Susan Ann Atkins | 109 | 3.6 | −4.0 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 334 | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 3,063 | 28.6 | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |