2023 UK local government election
The 2023 Dover District Council election took place on 4 May 2023 to elect members of Dover District Council in Kent, England.[1] This was the same day as other local elections.
Summary
The council was under Conservative majority control prior to the election. Labour won a majority of the seats at the election, giving them control of the council for the first time in twenty years.[2][3] The Labour group leader, Kevin Mills, was appointed leader of the council at the subsequent annual council meeting on 17 May 2023.[4]
Election result
[5] 2023 Dover District Council election |
Party | Candidates | Seats | Gains | Losses | Net gain/loss | Seats % | Votes % | Votes | +/− |
| Labour | 31 | 17 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 53.1 | 40.7 | 22,011 | +11.7 |
| Conservative | 32 | 14 | 1 | 6 | 5 | 43.8 | 37.8 | 20,449 | –5.9 |
| Independent | 8 | 1 | 1 | 1 | | 3.1 | 5.1 | 2,749 | –0.5 |
| Liberal Democrats | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0.0 | 6.4 | 3,474 | –1.6 |
| Green | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0.0 | 9.1 | 4,929 | –2.4 |
| Heritage | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0.0 | 0.4 | 230 | N/A |
| Reform UK | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0.0 | 0.4 | 205 | N/A |
Ward results
The Statement of Persons Nominated, which details the candidates standing in each ward, was released by Dover District Council following the close of nominations on 5 April 2023.[6] The results for each ward were as follows:[7]
Alkham and Capel-le-Ferne
Alkham and Capel-le-Ferne Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| Conservative | Martin Hibbert* | 428 | 49.7 | –2.4 |
| Labour | Bettine Walters | 274 | 31.8 | +20.2 |
| Liberal Democrats | Howard Evans | 160 | 18.6 | –17.7 |
Majority | 154 | 17.9 | |
Turnout | 879 | 33.1 | –0.6 |
Registered electors | 2,659 | | |
| Conservative hold | Swing | 11.3 | |
Buckland
Buckland (2 seats) Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| Labour | Kevin Mills* | 692 | 61.7 | +20.6 |
| Labour | Charlotte Zosseder* | 615 | 54.8 | +17.0 |
| Conservative | Jane Carrole | 373 | 33.2 | +1.6 |
| Conservative | Paul Reynolds | 350 | 31.2 | +3.9 |
Turnout | 1,122 | 21.2 | –2.1 |
Registered electors | 5,288 | | |
| Labour hold |
| Labour hold |
Aylesham, Eyethorne and Shepherdswell
Aylesham, Eyethorne and Shepherdswell (3 seats) Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| Labour | Charles Woodgate* | 1,423 | 54.1 | +17.5 |
| Labour | Jamie Pout | 1,410 | 53.6 | +13.7 |
| Labour | Maria Mamjan | 1,260 | 47.9 | +13.0 |
| Conservative | Mary Ann Richardson | 630 | 23.9 | –12.4 |
| Conservative | Roger Livesey | 599 | 22.8 | –8.6 |
| Conservative | Arun Matthew | 593 | 22.5 | N/A |
| Independent | Derek Garrity | 531 | 20.2 | N/A |
| Liberal Democrats | Barbara Sim | 319 | 12.1 | N/A |
| Independent | Graham Armstrong | 288 | 10.9 | N/A |
Turnout | 2,631 | 30.4 | –0.7 |
Registered electors | 8,669 | | |
| Labour hold |
| Labour hold |
| Labour gain from Independent |
Dover Downs and River
Dover Downs and River (2 seats) Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| Conservative | David Beaney* | 845 | 40.6 | –9.4 |
| Conservative | Mark Rose* | 761 | 36.6 | –10.5 |
| Labour | Ben Cosin | 680 | 32.7 | +6.3 |
| Green | Ashley Tanton | 526 | 25.3 | N/A |
| Liberal Democrats | Penelope James | 525 | 25.2 | –2.0 |
| Liberal Democrats | Adrian Walker-Smith | 383 | 18.4 | –4.4 |
Turnout | 2,080 | 39.1 | +4.0 |
Registered electors | 5,323 | | |
| Conservative hold |
| Conservative hold |
Eastry Rural
Eastry Rural (2 seats) Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| Conservative | Nick Kenton* | 776 | 41.4 | –6.1 |
| Conservative | Steve Manion* | 698 | 37.2 | –8.2 |
| Green | Peter Findley | 645 | 34.4 | –10.7 |
| Green | Sarah Gleave | 615 | 32.8 | N/A |
| Labour | David Pestell | 380 | 20.3 | –10.5 |
| Labour | Geoff Hack | 369 | 19.7 | N/A |
| Liberal Democrats | Cheri Pennington | 103 | 5.5 | N/A |
Turnout | 1,875 | 39.1 | +4.2 |
Registered electors | 4,792 | | |
| Conservative hold |
| Conservative hold |
Guston, Kingsdown and St. Margaret's-at-Cliffe
Guston, Kingsdown and St. Margaret's-at-Cliffe (2 seats) Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| Conservative | Martin Bates* | 960 | 40.1 | –12.0 |
| Conservative | Oliver Richardson* | 941 | 39.3 | –2.8 |
| Green | John Lonsdale | 758 | 31.7 | +7.8 |
| Labour | Maggie Cosin | 690 | 28.8 | +9.4 |
| Labour | Brynley Hawkins | 604 | 25.3 | +10.0 |
| Liberal Democrats | John Gosling | 262 | 11.0 | N/A |
| Heritage | Sylvia Laidlow-Petersen | 230 | 9.6 | N/A |
Turnout | 2,392 | 41.3 | +2.2 |
Registered electors | 5,788 | | |
| Conservative hold |
| Conservative hold |
Little Stour and Ashstone
Little Stour and Ashstone (2 seats) Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| Conservative | Trevor Bartlett* | 1,103 | 54.4 | –3.5 |
| Conservative | Martin Porter | 864 | 42.6 | –11.3 |
| Labour | John Featherstone | 428 | 21.1 | +7.5 |
| Liberal Democrats | Russell Timpson | 401 | 19.8 | +3.9 |
| Labour | Gillian Weaver | 360 | 17.8 | N/A |
| Green | Jenny Mathlin | 353 | 17.4 | –8.9 |
| Green | June Sharpe | 289 | 14.3 | N/A |
Turnout | 2,027 | 35.5 | –2.0 |
Registered electors | 5,717 | | |
| Conservative hold |
| Conservative hold |
Maxton and Elms Vale
Maxton and Elms Vale Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| Labour | Michael Nee | 398 | 40.7 | +0.1 |
| Independent | Graham Wanstall | 288 | 29.4 | N/A |
| Conservative | Callum Warriner | 193 | 19.7 | –25.0 |
| Green | Nick Shread | 100 | 10.2 | N/A |
Majority | 110 | 11.3 | |
Turnout | 994 | 33.7 | +4.6 |
Registered electors | 2,948 | | |
| Labour gain from Conservative | Swing | N/A | |
Middle Deal
Middle Deal (2 seats) Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| Labour | Stacey Blair | 1,128 | 56.8 | +24.9 |
| Labour | David Cronk* | 1,035 | 52.1 | +15.2 |
| Conservative | Trevor Bond* | 710 | 35.8 | –3.4 |
| Conservative | Susan Davenport | 563 | 28.3 | –4.6 |
| Liberal Democrats | Christine Headley | 252 | 12.7 | +1.9 |
Turnout | 1,986 | 35.5 | +5.0 |
Registered electors | 5,593 | | |
| Labour gain from Conservative |
| Labour hold |
Mill Hill
Mill Hill (2 seats) Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| Labour | Helen Williams* | 1,074 | 55.6 | +15.5 |
| Labour | Jeff Loffman | 1,018 | 52.7 | +15.2 |
| Conservative | David Hawkes* | 519 | 26.8 | –3.2 |
| Green | Christine Oliver | 496 | 25.7 | –3.1 |
| Conservative | Chris Burwash | 472 | 24.4 | –1.9 |
Turnout | 1,933 | 32.8 | +2.7 |
Registered electors | 5,890 | | |
| Labour hold |
| Labour hold |
North Deal
North Deal (2 seats) Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| Labour | Dan Parks | 1,359 | 58.3 | +20.7 |
| Labour | Sue Beer* | 1,357 | 58.2 | +15.8 |
| Conservative | Peter Jull* | 896 | 38.5 | –0.7 |
| Conservative | John Morgan | 729 | 31.3 | –6.9 |
Turnout | 2,330 | 40.8 | +3.6 |
Registered electors | 5,705 | | |
| Labour gain from Conservative |
| Labour hold |
Sandwich
Sandwich (2 seats) Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| Independent | Mark Moorhouse | 945 | 45.9 | N/A |
| Conservative | Daniel Friend* | 823 | 40.0 | –2.8 |
| Conservative | Harry Sampson | 701 | 34.1 | –8.2 |
| Liberal Democrats | Martyn Pennington | 442 | 21.5 | +3.5 |
| Labour | Paul Louis | 336 | 16.3 | –0.7 |
| Labour | Martin Garside | 333 | 16.2 | +1.0 |
Turnout | 2,058 | 39.1 | –1.2 |
Registered electors | 5,263 | | |
| Independent gain from Conservative |
| Conservative hold |
St. Radigund's
St. Radigund's (2 seats) Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| Labour | Lynne Wright | 464 | 46.5 | +3.7 |
| Labour | Gordon Cowan | 433 | 43.4 | +11.2 |
| Independent | James Defriend | 339 | 34.0 | N/A |
| Conservative | Andy Calder | 234 | 23.5 | –3.8 |
| Conservative | Brenda Collins | 233 | 23.4 | –1.0 |
Turnout | 997 | 21.8 | –0.6 |
Registered electors | 4,578 | | |
| Labour hold |
| Labour hold |
Tower Hamlets
Town and Castle
Town and Castle (2 seats) Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| Labour | Susan Hill | 616 | 42.5 | +14.4 |
| Labour | Edward Biggs* | 600 | 41.4 | +18.5 |
| Conservative | Richard Jeacock | 423 | 29.2 | –1.1 |
| Conservative | Samantha Reynolds | 390 | 26.9 | ±0.0 |
| Green | Beccy Sawbridge | 238 | 16.4 | –4.2 |
| Independent | Kay Marsh | 207 | 14.3 | N/A |
| Independent | Ashley Payne | 122 | 8.4 | N/A |
| Liberal Democrats | Lynne O'Donoghue | 83 | 5.7 | N/A |
| Independent | Brian Philp | 26 | 1.8 | N/A |
Turnout | 1,451 | 25.4 | –1.5 |
Registered electors | 5,713 | | |
| Labour gain from Conservative |
| Labour hold |
Walmer
Walmer (2 seats) Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| Conservative | Chris Vinson* | 1,023 | 41.7 | –4.3 |
| Conservative | Derek Murphy* | 999 | 40.7 | –0.8 |
| Green | Mike Eddy | 726 | 29.6 | +2.6 |
| Labour | Amanda Holloway | 685 | 27.9 | +8.6 |
| Labour | Ben Bano | 656 | 26.7 | +9.0 |
| Liberal Democrats | Rick Blackwell | 406 | 16.5 | +6.3 |
Turnout | 2,454 | 42.7 | +2.3 |
Registered electors | 5,742 | | |
| Conservative hold |
| Conservative hold |
Whitfield
Whitfield (2 seats) Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| Conservative | Roger Knight | 748 | 47.9 | –8.5 |
| Conservative | Jim Back* | 718 | 46.0 | –5.2 |
| Labour | Claire Hill | 462 | 29.6 | +7.9 |
| Labour | Ruth Harris-Small | 407 | 26.1 | +7.5 |
| Reform UK | Max McGillivray | 205 | 13.1 | N/A |
| Green | Steph O'Connor | 183 | 11.7 | –4.9 |
| Liberal Democrats | Bob Hope | 138 | 8.8 | –7.5 |
Turnout | 1,560 | 30.0 | +0.6 |
Registered electors | 5,209 | | |
| Conservative hold |
| Conservative hold |
References
- ^ "Notice of Poll" (PDF). Dover District Council. 6 April 2023. Retrieved 19 April 2023.
- ^ Lennon, Sam (5 May 2023). "Labour gain 17 seats for overall control of Dover district in 2023 elections". Kent Online. Retrieved 25 June 2023.
- ^ Fuller, Christian; Gupta, Tanya (5 May 2023). "Kent election results 2023". BBC News. Retrieved 25 June 2023.
- ^ Esson, Daniel (17 May 2023). "New Labour leader of Dover District Council reveals plans for cabinet". Kent Online. Retrieved 26 September 2023.
- ^ "Dover result - Local Elections 2023". BBC News. Archived from the original on 2023-05-23.
- ^ "STATEMENT OF PERSONS NOMINATED" (PDF). Dover District Council. 5 April 2023. Retrieved 19 April 2023.
- ^ "Declaration of result of poll" (PDF). Dover District Council. Retrieved 26 September 2023.