Before the election Labour had 44 seats, the Conservatives 10, independents 6 and the Liberal Democrats 3 seats.[3] 75 candidates stood in the election for the 21 seats that were being contested,[3] with Labour very unlikely to lose control of the council, which was the only council in West Yorkshire they still had a majority on.[4]
Election result
The results saw the Conservatives gain 4 seats, 3 from Labour and 1 from an independent.[5][6] Labour were defeated in Horbury and South Ossett, Pontefract South and Wrenthorpe and Outwood West wards,[5] with the losses blamed by the Labour leader on national issues.[7] The other Conservative gain came in Wakefield South where they defeated independent councillor Norman Hazell by 17 votes.[5][8] Hazell was a former Conservative member who had left the party in 2001 to sit as an independent councillor.[5] However the other independent member managed to hold his seat in Featherstone despite a strong challenge from Labour.[5]
^"Local elections: Wakefield". BBC News Online. Retrieved 9 December 2009.
^ ab"Local elections". The Times. 6 May 2006. p. 64. ISSN 0140-0460.
^ ab"UK's eyes on us as council faces the litmus test". Yorkshire Evening Post. 5 April 2006. ISSN 0963-2255.
^"Parties battle to regain control". BBC News Online. 27 April 2006. Retrieved 9 December 2009.
^ abcde"Coalition keeps its grip on city". Yorkshire Evening Post. 6 May 2006. ISSN 0963-2255.
^"No surprises in election results". BBC News Online. 5 May 2006. Retrieved 9 December 2009.
^"Tories gain Wakefield seats". Wakefield Express. 5 May 2006. Retrieved 9 December 2009.[permanent dead link]
^"Stalwart is ousted in elections". Wakefield Express. 5 May 2006. Retrieved 9 December 2009.[permanent dead link]
^ abcdefghijklmnopqrstuv"Local Election Results May 2006". Wakefield Metropolitan District Council. Archived from the original on 27 September 2006. Retrieved 9 December 2009.
^ abcdefghijklmnopqrstuv"Local election results 2006". Yorkshire Evening Post. 6 May 2006. ISSN 0963-2255.