# Girvan and South Carrick (ward)

Girvan and South Carrick is one of the eight electoral wards of South Ayrshire Council. Created in 2007, the ward elects three councillors using the single transferable vote electoral system and covers an area with a population of 10,871 people.
The ward has produced strong results for both the Scottish National Party (SNP) and the Conservatives with each party taking one seat at every election except in 2012.

## Boundaries

The ward was created following the Fourth Statutory Reviews of Electoral Arrangements ahead of the 2007 Scottish local elections. As a result of the Local Governance (Scotland) Act 2004, local elections in Scotland would use the single transferable vote electoral system from 2007 onwards so Girvan and South Carrick was formed from an amalgamation of several previous first-past-the-post wards.
It contained all of the former Girvan Ailsa and Girvan Glendoune wards as well as the vast majority of the former South Carrick ward. The ward includes the southernmost part of the council area on the Firth of Clyde coast and next to the council's borders with East Ayrshire and Dumfries and Galloway. It includes the town of Girvan as well as the uninhabited Ailsa Craig. Following the Fifth Statutory Reviews of Electoral Arrangements ahead of the 2017 Scottish local elections, the ward's northern boundary was amended and an area around Maidens, Turnberry and Kirkoswald was transferred into it from the Maybole, North Carrick and Coylton ward.

## Councillors

| Election | Councillors | Councillors | Councillors | Councillors | Councillors |
| 2007 | | Ian Fitzsimmons (Conservative) | | Alec Oattes (SNP) | John McDowall (Labour) |
| 2012 | | Alec Clark (Independent) | | Alec Oattes (SNP) | John McDowall (Labour) |
| 2017 | Peter Henderson (SNP) | Alec Clark (Independent) | | Ian Fitzsimmons (Conservative) |
| 2022 | Peter Henderson (SNP) | Alec Clark (Independent) | Gavin Scott (Conservative) |
| 2023 | | Alec Clark (Independent) | Gavin Scott (Conservative) | Alan Lamont (Conservative) |

## Election results
### 2023 by-election

Girvan and South Carrick (21 September 2023) - 1 seat :
| Party | Party | Candidate | FPv% | Count | Count | Count | Count |
| Party | Party | Candidate | FPv% | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
| | Conservative | Alan Lamont | 47.5 | 1,315 | 1,323 | 1,346 | 1,497 |
| | SNP | Joseph McLaughlin | 28.1 | 778 | 802 | 824 | 947 |
| | Labour | Nicola Saxton | 18.0 | 499 | 507 | 551 | |
| | Liberal Democrats | Jamie Ross | 3.9 | 108 | 113 | | |
| | Alba | Denise Sommerville | 2.5 | 70 | | | |
| Electorate: 8,648 Valid: 2,770 Spoilt: 32 Quota: 1,386 Turnout: 32.4% ||||||||
Source:

### 2022 election

Girvan and South Carrick - 3 seats :
| Party | Party | Candidate | FPv% | Count | Count | Count | Count | Count | Count | Count |
| Party | Party | Candidate | FPv% | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 |
| | Independent | Alec Clark (incumbent) | 31.4 | 1,277 | | | | | | |
| | SNP | Peter Henderson (incumbent) | 24.8 | 1,008 | 1,071 | | | | | |
| | Conservative | Gavin Scott | 14.1 | 573 | 600 | 601 | 607 | 684 | 753 | 1,371 |
| | Conservative | Linda Kane | 13.8 | 563 | 591 | 592 | 594 | 620 | 734 | |
| | Labour | Aaron Gilpin | 8.8 | 358 | 398 | 410 | 423 | 508 | | |
| | Independent | Todor Joseph Radic | 5.6 | 230 | 286 | 296 | 321 | | | |
| | Alba | Eileen Spence | 1.1 | 47 | 51 | 61 | | | | |
| Electorate: 8,849 Valid: 4,056 Spoilt: 75 Quota: 1,015 Turnout: 46.7% |||||||||||
Source:

### 2017 election

Girvan and South Carrick - 3 seats :
| Party | Party | Candidate | FPv% | Count | Count | Count | Count | Count | Count |
| Party | Party | Candidate | FPv% | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
| | Independent | Alec Clark (incumbent) | 33.1 | 1,502 | | | | | |
| | Conservative | Ian Fitzsimmons | 26.7 | 1,211 | | | | | |
| | SNP | Peter Henderson | 19.3 | 876 | 919 | 921 | 933 | 1,012 | 1,285 |
| | Independent | Karen Clark-McCartney | 9.5 | 429 | 569 | 586 | 636 | 803 | |
| | Labour | Owen Martin | 9.4 | 428 | 485 | 497 | 515 | | |
| | Independent | Gavin Scott | 1.9 | 85 | 125 | 134 | | | |
| Electorate: 8,742 Valid: 4,531 Spoilt: 76 Quota: 1,133 Turnout: 52.3% ||||||||||
Source:

### 2012 election

Girvan and South Carrick - 3 seats :
| Party | Party | Candidate | FPv% | Count | Count | Count |
| Party | Party | Candidate | FPv% | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| | Independent | Alec Clark | 47.4 | 1,609 | | |
| | SNP | Alec Oattes (incumbent) | 19.7 | 670 | 822 | 985 |
| | Labour | John McDowall (incumbent) | 17.0 | 579 | 766 | 956 |
| | Conservative | Iain Fitzsimmons (incumbent) | 15.8 | 538 | 741 | |
| Electorate: 7,920 Valid: 3,396 Spoilt: 31 Quota: 850 Turnout: 42.9% |||||||
Source:

### 2007 election

Girvan and South Carrick – 3 seats :
| Party | Party | Candidate | FPv% | Count | Count | Count | Count |
| Party | Party | Candidate | FPv% | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
| | Conservative | Iain Fitzsimmons | 37.3 | 1,542 | | | |
| | SNP | Alec Oattes | 33.1 | 1,368 | | | |
| | Labour | John McDowall | 17.4 | 721 | 832 | 921 | ??? |
| | Labour | Calum Little | 12.2 | 504 | 567 | 611 | |
| Valid: 4,135 Quota: 1,034 ||||||||
Source: