Scottish Labour has regained control of West Dunbartonshire Council after taking a majority win over the SNP in the local council elections.

The results were announced today (May 6) following a count at Clydebank Leisure Centre. 

Every Scottish Labour candidate who stood in West Dunbartonshire was successfully returned as a councillor. 

The Scottish Conservative seemed to pay the price for happenings in Westminster as they lost the two seats previously held on the council.

Clydebank Post:

Unsuccessful Tory candidates 

 

Labour celebrated with loud cheers as they won 12 seats - a gain of four from 2017 - with the SNP reduced to second place with nine seats, a loss of one.

The first result declared in the Lomond ward was a glimpse of what was to come as Martin Rooney and Hazel Sorrell joined Jonathan McColl on the three seats available.

Clydebank Post: Labour have regained control of West Dunbartonshire Council with 12 seatsLabour have regained control of West Dunbartonshire Council with 12 seats

And it was the same in the Leven ward, next to declare, with Michelle McGinty and John Millar, from Labour, joining the SNP's Ian Dickson and veteran campaigner Jim Bollan, of the Community Party, in taking their seats.

Councillor Bollan explained he was happy the former Conservative councillor, Sally Page, had lost her seat in Lomond ward.

He said: "What I'm most delighted with is that West Dunbartonshire Council is going to be a Tory-free zone."

Clydebank Post:

Jim Bollan is re-elected 

 

Kilpatrick ward was called next with Labour again outnumbering their SNP counterparts two to one, with Douglas McAllister and Lawrence O'Neill re-elected and Gordon Scanlan triumphing for the SNP.

The vote in Dumbarton was shared equally between the two main parties with Karen Conaghan and Chris Pollock, of the SNP, winning alongside David McBride and Gurpreet Singh Johal, brother of Indian prisoner Jagtar Singh Johal.

The Clydebank wards, Central and the Waterfront were again split down the middle between the SNP and Labour as Diane Docherty, Sophie Traynor, Lauren Oxley and Jim McElhill all being elected for the SNP and Dannie Lennie, June McKay, Claire Steel and Craig Edwards all winning for Labour for their respective wards.

Clydebank Post:

It was not the result the SNP had hoped for 

 

Councillor Dannie Lennie summed up Labour's day when he declared: "West Dunbartonshire at long last has turned red and Labour are in control."

Jackie Baillie, Dumbarton constituency MSP, said: “I am absolutely delighted for my colleagues and want to thank all of the campaign team who have worked so hard to make this victory possible.

“It is absolutely phenomenal that each and every Scottish Labour candidate in West Dunbartonshire has been returned as a councillor.”