Liverpool City Council elections

Liverpool City Council has existed since 1880, when Liverpool was awarded city status. Prior to this date the local authority was a town council.

Since 1973 one third of Liverpool City Council in Merseyside, England is elected each year for three years, followed by one year without election. (This gap year was the election year for Merseyside Metropolitan County Council elections in 1973, 1977 and 1981 (after which the County Council was abolished). Since the last boundary changes in 2004, 90 councillors have been elected from 30 wards.[1] Before 1973, elections were held every year for one third of the council. The term of office for councillors was three years.

Political control

Since 1835 political control of the council has been held by the following parties:[2][3]

Party in control	Years
Labour	2010–present
Liberal Democrats	1998 - 2010
Labour	1996 - 1998
No overall control	1992 - 1996
Labour	1983 - 1992
No overall control	1973 - 1983
Labour	1972 - 1973
No overall control	1971 - 1972
Conservative	1967 - 1971
Labour	1963 - 1967
Conservative	1962 - 1963
Labour	1956 - 1962
No overall control	1955 - 1956
Conservative	1895 - 1955
Liberals & Irish Nationalists	1892 - 1895
Conservative	1841 - 1892
Reformers (liberals)	1835 - 1841

Council elections

• 2020 Election postponed until 2021 due to Coronavirus disease 2019
• 2019
• 2018
• 2016
• 2015
• 2014
• 2012 Establishment of Elected Mayor of Liverpool
• 2011
• 2010 Labour takes control of the Council.
• 2008
• 2007
• 2006
• 2004 Boundary changes reduce the number of seats by 9 to 90[4]
• 2003
• 2002
• 2000
• 1999
• 1998 Liberal Democrats take control of the Council.
• 1996
• 1995
• 1994 The last Conservative councillor elected.
• 1992
• 1991
• 1990
• 1988
• 1987
• 1986 12 March 1987 - 47 Militant Labour Councillors disbarred
• 1984
• 1983
• 1982
• 1980 Whole council elected after boundary changes
• 1979
• 1978
• 1976
• 1975
• 1973 Boundary changes reduce the number of wards from 40 to 33, aldermen abolished.[5]
• 1972
• 1971
• 1970
• 1969
• 1968
• 1967
• 1966
• 1965
• 1964
• 1963
• 1962
• 1961
• 1960
• 1959
• 1958
• 1957
• 1956
• 1955 Labour take control for the first time.[5]
• 1954
• 1953 Boundary changes, all up election
• 1952
• 1951
• 1950
• 1949
• 1947
• 1946
• 1945
• 1938 1943 Alderman Austin Harford elected as first Catholic Lord Mayor since the Reformation.
• 1937
• 1936
• 1935
• 1934
• 1933
• 1932
• 1931
• 1930
• 1929 Catholic Party renamed Centre.
• 1928 Third seat added for Childwall ward. Croxteth ward added.
• 1927 Councillor Margaret Beavan elected as first woman Lord Mayor
• 1926
• 1925 Third seat added for Allerton ward. Irish Party renamed Catholic Party.
• 1924 Second seat added for Allerton ward. Mersey Tunnel referendum 7 May 1925.
• 1923
• 1922
• 1921
• 1920 Allerton, Childwall and Little Woolton ward split into Allerton (1 seat); Childwall (2 seats) and Little Woolton (1 seat)
• 1919 First two Labour Aldermen elected.
• 1918 Second seats added for Allerton, Childwall and Little Woolton ; Fazakerley and Much Woolton.
• 1914
• 1913 Two new wards created : Much Woolton and Allerton, Childwall and Little Woolton
• 1912
• 1911
• 1910 Aldermen elected solely by Councillors (1909 or 1910?)
• 1909 Eleanor Rathbone, first woman elected as a councillor on 7 October for Granby ward.
• 1908
• 1907 First Female candidates.
• 1906 Third Old Swan Cllr elected for the first time.
• 1905 New ward : Fazakerley (1st Cllr elected). Second Old Swan Cllr elected and third Wavertree West Cllr elected. First Labour and Socialist Cllrs elected.
• 1904 New ward : Old Swan (1st Cllr elected) and 2nd Cllr elected for Wavertree West
• 1903 New ward : Wavertree West (1 Cllr elected), First Protestant candidates.
• 1902 New wards : Aigburth and Garston (3 Cllrs elected for each) and third Cllr elected for Anfield.
• 1901 New wards : Walton and Warbreck (1 Cllr elected for each) 2nd Cllr elected for Anfield.
• 1900 New ward : Anfield (1 Cllr elected)
• 1899 New ward : Sefton Park East (3 Cllrs elected)
• 1898
• 1897
• 1896
• 1895 Number of wards increased from 16 to 28. All-up election.
• 1894
• 1893
• 1892 Title of Lord Mayor awarded.
• 1891
• 1890
• 1889
• 1888
• 1887
• 1886
• 1885 The Elections (Hours of Poll) Act 1885 extended polling hours to 8am to 8pm.
• 1884
• 1883
• 1882
• 1881
• 1880 Liverpool granted City status 12 May 1880

Relevant Legislation

• Registration of Political Parties Act 1998
• Representation of the People Act 1989 - extended the time that a British citizen could have lived abroad and still vote from 5 years to 20 years.
• Representation of the People Act 1985 - allowed British citizens resident overseas to vote in the constituency they were last resident for up to five years after they left the UK. Increased the deposit in Parliamentary elections from £150 to £500, and lowerered the percentage of the vote required to retain the deposit from 12.5% to 5%.
• Representation of the People Act 1983 - excluded prisoners from voting in local and Parliamentary elections. The deposit for European Parliamentary elections was increased from £600 to £700.
• Representation of the People Act 1981 - excludes prisoners from being MPs.
• Local Government Act 1972 - Abolished Aldermen.
• Representation of the People Act 1969 - extended the franchise to over 18s.
• Representation of the People Act 1948 - Changed election day from 1 November (except when it fell on a Sunday) to the first Thursday in May.
• Local Government Act, 1933 - disenfranchised aldermen from voting in aldermanic elections. Only councillors were eligible to vote in the aldermanic elections.
• Local Government Act 1929 - abolished the system of Poor Law Unions in England and Wales and their boards of guardians, transferring their powers to local authorities.
• Representation of the People (Equal Franchise) Act 1928 - extended the franchise to all women over 21.
• Representation of the People Act 1918 (The Fourth Reform Act) extended the franchise to all adult males and women over 30 years of age if they were either a member or married to a member of the Local Government Register, a property owner, or a graduate voting in a University constituency. 5 million extra men and 8.4 million extra women were enfranchised.
• Municipal Corporations Amendment Act 1910 - Restricted voting for Aldermen to Councillors only.
• Elections (Hours of Poll) Act 1885 extended polling hours to 8am to 8pm.
• Representation of the People Act 1884 - All men paying an annual rental of £10 or all those holding land valued at £10 now had the vote. The British electorate then totalled over 5,500,000.
• Corrupt and Illegal Practices Prevention Act 1883 criminalised attempts to bribe voters and standardised the amount that could be spent on election expenses.
• Municipal Corporations Act 1882 -
• Municipal Franchise Act 1869 - enfranchised women ratepayers.

See also

• Liverpool
• Liverpool City Council
• Liverpool Town Council elections 1835 - 1879
• Liverpool School Board elections 1870–1900
• Directly elected mayor of Liverpool - 2012–present
• Merseyside County Council 1974–1986
• Mayors and Lord Mayors of Liverpool 1207 to present
• List of electoral wards in Merseyside

References

1. "Councillors". Liverpool City Council. Archived from the original on 1 December 2008. Retrieved 17 February 2010.
2. "Liverpool". BBC News Online. 19 April 2009. Retrieved 7 May 2010.
3. "Defection confusion in Liverpool". BBC News Online. 2 May 2008. Retrieved 17 February 2010.
4. "Liverpool council". BBC News Online. Retrieved 17 February 2010.
5. Jeffery, David (1 August 2017). "The strange death of Tory Liverpool: Conservative electoral decline in Liverpool, 1945–1996". British Politics. 12 (3): 386–407. doi:10.1057/s41293-016-0032-6. ISSN 1746-9198.

• By-election results

External links

• Liverpool City Council