1986 Reading Borough Council election |
15 seats of 45 on council 23 seats needed for a majority |
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The 1986 Reading Borough Council election was held on 8 May 1986, at the same time as other local elections across England and Scotland. One third of Reading Borough Council's 45 seats were up for election.
The election saw the Conservatives lose their majority on the council. Labour gained most seats, but remained one seat short of an overall majority, leaving the council with no overall control. After the election, Labour had 22 seats, the Conservatives had 18 seats, and the SDP-Liberal Alliance had 5 seats, all of whom were Liberals.
Labour subsequently took control of the council, with the support of two disaffected Conservatives.[1] The Labour leader, Mike Orton, took the council's top political job as chair of the policy committee. The Conservative leader, Deryck Morton, stood down as party leader immediately after the election, being replaced by Geoff Canning.[2] The Liberal leader remained Jim Day. Turnout was reported to be 39%.[3]
Results
Reading Borough Council Election, 1986 Party | Seats | Gains | Losses | Net gain/loss | Seats % | Votes % | Votes | +/− |
| Labour | 9 | 5 | 0 | +5 | 60.0 | 36.4 | 15,213 | +2.9 |
| Conservative | 4 | 0 | 5 | -5 | 26.7 | 32.8 | 13,736 | -9.6 |
| Alliance | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 13.3 | 28.5 | 11,920 | +5.3 |
| Green | 0 | | | | 0 | 2.3 | 954 | +1.4 |
Ward results
The results in each ward were as follows (candidates with an asterisk* were the previous incumbent standing for re-election, candidates with a dagger(†) were sitting councillors contesting different wards):[4][3]
Abbey Ward Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| Labour | Dave Geary* | 1,258 | 54.8 | -2.9 |
| Conservative | Chris Webb | 476 | 20.7 | -7.4 |
| SDP | Jeremy Lazenby | 404 | 17.6 | +3.5 |
| Green | Peter Oldham | 156 | 6.8 | n/a |
Turnout | 2,294 | | |
| Labour hold | Swing | +2.25 | |
Battle Ward Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| Labour | Graham Rush* | 1,292 | 51.4 | +8.1 |
| SDP | Clive Jones | 597 | 23.7 | -10.5 |
| Conservative | Susan White | 512 | 20.4 | +0.3 |
| Green | Ian Cooper | 114 | 4.5 | +2.2 |
Turnout | 2,515 | | |
| Labour hold | Swing | +9.3 | |
Caversham Ward Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| Conservative | Fred Pugh* | 1,624 | 54.7 | -10.0 |
| Labour | Geoff Mander | 803 | 27.1 | +2.6 |
| SDP | Mary Hargreaves | 541 | 18.2 | +7.4 |
Turnout | 2,968 | | |
| Conservative hold | Swing | -6.3 | |
Church Ward Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| Labour | June Orton* | 1,077 | 51.3 | +2.1 |
| Conservative | Jennifer Abbott | 569 | 27.1 | -8.3 |
| Liberal | Steve Begg | 452 | 21.5 | +6.2 |
Turnout | 2,098 | | |
| Labour hold | Swing | +5.2 | |
Katesgrove Ward Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| Labour | Mark Hendry | 1,184 | 56.5 | 5.7 |
| Conservative | Shirley Mills* | 620 | 29.6 | -3.9 |
| SDP | Nikola Sergt | 292 | 13.9 | +0.8 |
Turnout | 2,096 | | |
| Labour gain from Conservative | Swing | +4.8 | |
Kentwood Ward Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| Liberal | George Ford | 1,227 | 43.7 | +7.3 |
| Conservative | Derek Browne* | 865 | 30.8 | -9.1 |
| Labour | Linda Harper | 714 | 25.4 | +1.8 |
Turnout | 2,806 | | |
| Liberal gain from Conservative | Swing | +8.2 | |
Minster Ward Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| Conservative | Charles Sage* | 1,218 | 42.1 | -12.6 |
| Labour | Brian Statter | 1,014 | 35.0 | +5.0 |
| SDP | Steve Hanson | 566 | 19.6 | +4.2 |
| Green | Andrew Hardy | 97 | 3.4 | n/a |
Turnout | 2,895 | | |
| Conservative hold | Swing | -8.8 | |
Norcot Ward Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| Labour | Jo Lovelock | 1,373 | 43.9 | +3.0 |
| Liberal | John Freeman* | 1,168 | 37.3 | -2.9 |
| Conservative | Peter Wells | 518 | 16.5 | -2.4 |
| Green | Maureen Gray | 71 | 2.3 | n/a |
Turnout | 3,130 | | |
| Labour gain from Liberal | Swing | +2.95 | |
Park Ward Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| Labour | Gill Parker | 1,530 | 51.4 | +7.2 |
| Conservative | Norman Pearson* | 921 | 30.9 | -7.6 |
| SDP | Robin Pratt | 359 | 12.1 | -1.4 |
| Green | Philip Unsworth | 167 | 5.6 | +1.8 |
Turnout | 2,977 | | |
| Labour gain from Conservative | Swing | 7.4 | |
Peppard Ward Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| Conservative | Geoff Canning* | 1,479 | 44.5 | -18.1 |
| Liberal | Ian Fenwick | 1,452 | 43.6 | +19.5 |
| Labour | Phil Hingley | 396 | 11.9 | -1.4 |
Turnout | 3,327 | | |
| Conservative hold | Swing | -18.8 | |
Redlands Ward Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| Labour | Rajinder Sohpal | 1,105 | 34.1 | -3.2 |
| SDP | David Cornes | 1,043 | 32.2 | +7.9 |
| Conservative | Grace Wray | 912 | 28.1 | -6.0 |
| Green | Chris Parr | 181 | 5.6 | +1.3 |
Turnout | 3,241 | | |
| Labour gain from Conservative | Swing | +4.6 | |
Southcote Ward Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| Labour | Christine Howell | 1,430 | 44.0 | +10.7 |
| Conservative | John Rimmer | 1,187 | 36.5 | -9.2 |
| SDP | Andrew McLuskey | 632 | 19.5 | -1.5 |
Turnout | 3,249 | | |
| Labour gain from Conservative | Swing | +9.95 | |
Thames Ward Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| Conservative | Hamza Fuad* | 1,435 | 40.6 | -19.7 |
| Liberal | Martyn Allies | 1,248 | 35.3 | +7.7 |
| Conservative | Tony Markham† | 381 | 10.8 | n/a |
| Labour | Mark Drukker | 306 | 8.6 | -3.5 |
| Green | Louise Barnes | 168 | 4.7 | n/a |
Turnout | 3,538 | | |
| Conservative hold | Swing | -13.7 | |
Tilehurst Ward Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| Liberal | Janet Bond* | 1,614 | 59.5 | +4.4 |
| Conservative | David Henderson | 655 | 24.1 | -8.4 |
| Labour | Jim Toner | 445 | 16.4 | +4.1 |
Turnout | 2,714 | | |
| Liberal hold | Swing | +6.4 | |
Whitley Ward Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| Labour | Mike Orton* | 1,286 | 65.1 | +13.1 |
| Conservative | Barry Cummings | 364 | 18.4 | -6.7 |
| SDP | John Wood | 325 | 16.5 | -6.5 |
Turnout | 1,975 | | |
| Labour hold | Swing | +9.9 | |
By-elections 1986–1987
Peppard By-Election 11 September 1986 Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| Liberal | Ian Fenwick | 1,564 | 46.6 | +2.9 |
| Conservative | Frank Heyes | 1,408 | 41.9 | -2.5 |
| Labour | Phil Hingley | 385 | 11.5 | -0.4 |
Majority | 156 | 4.6 | |
Turnout | 3,357 | 45.2 | |
| Liberal gain from Conservative | Swing | +2.7 | |
The Peppard ward by-election in 1986 was triggered by the resignation of Conservative councillor Geoff Lowe.[5][6]
References
- ^ "Fuads give Labour reins of power". Evening Post. Reading. 21 May 1986. p. 9. Retrieved 6 April 2022.
- ^ "Geoff elected to lead Tories". Evening Post. Reading. 13 May 1986. p. 9. Retrieved 6 April 2022.
- ^ a b "Tory defeat in town means a hung council". Evening Post. Reading. 9 May 1986. p. 6. Retrieved 6 April 2022.
- ^ "Power struggle for Reading: How they line up". Evening Post. Reading. 10 April 1986. p. 5. Retrieved 6 April 2022.
- ^ "Leading Tory resigns his council seat". Evening Post. Reading. 16 July 1986. p. 9. Retrieved 10 April 2022.
- ^ "By-election win boosts Alliance drive for victory". Evening Post. Reading. 12 September 1986. p. 1. Retrieved 10 April 2022.
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Topics | |
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Politics | Constituencies | - Reading East
- Reading West
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Local elections | |
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Places | Suburbs and areas within the borough | |
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Electoral wards within the borough | |
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Suburbs and areas outside the borough | |
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