2002 Bristol City Council election

2002 Bristol City Council election
2 May 2002
24 of 70 seats (One third) to Bristol City Council; 36 seats needed for a majority
Registered	200,683
Turnout	35.1%
	2002 local election results in Bristol
Council Leader before election before election; George Micklewright; Labour	Council Leader after election ; Diane Bunyan; Labour

The 2002 Bristol City Council election took place on 2 May 2002, on the same day as other local elections. Despite suffering some losses, the Labour Party managed to retain a slim majority.^[4]^[5]

Previous composition

2001 election

Party		Seats
	Labour	40
	Liberal Democrats	21
	Conservative	9
Total		70

Composition of council seats before election

Party		Seats
	Labour	39
	Liberal Democrats	21
	Conservative	9
Vacant		1
Total		70

Changes between elections

Summary

Election result

2002 Bristol City Council election
Party		This election				Full council			This election
Party		Candidates	Seats	Net	Seats %	Other	Total	Total %	Votes	Votes %	+/−
	Labour	24	9	4	37.5	27	36	51.4	21,358	30.4	8.0
	Liberal Democrats	24	9	3	37.5	15	24	34.3	22,806	32.4	7.6
	Conservative	24	6	1	25.0	4	10	14.3	20,807	29.6	0.1
	Green	24	0		0.0	0	0	0.0	3,620	5.1	1.0
	Socialist Alliance	7	0		0.0	0	0	0.0	687	1.0	N/a
	Independent	1	0		0.0	0	0	0.0	684	1.0	N/a
	Socialist Labour	3	0		0.0	0	0	0.0	176	0.3	0.6
	Socialist	2	0		0.0	0	0	0.0	158	0.2	0.1
Total		109	24			46	70		70,296

Popular vote

Liberal Democrats			32.44%
Labour			30.38%
Conservative			29.60%
Green			5.15%
Other			2.43%

Council seats

Labour			37.50%
Liberal Democrats			37.50%
Conservative			25.00%

Bristol City Council composition following the 2002 election

Election of Group Leaders

Diane Bunyan (Windmill Hill) was elected leader of the Labour Group with Peter Hammond (Southmead) as her deputy, Barbara Janke (Clifton) was re-elected leader of the Liberal Democrats group and Peter Abraham (Stoke Bishop) was re-elected leader of the Conservative group.

Government Formation

Diane Bunyan the leader of the Labour group was duly elected leader of the council and formed a labour administration.

Ward results

Swings are compared to the 1999 election when these seats were last contested

Avonmouth

Avonmouth
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Spud Murphy	1,428	44.0	+11.2
	Labour	Celia Lukins *	1,339	41.3	–5.7
	Liberal Democrats	Martyn Dunn	365	11.3	–3.1
	Green	Luke Burns	112	3.5	–2.4
Majority			89	2.7	N/a
Rejected ballots			9	0.3	+0.2
Turnout			3,253	35.7	–0.8
Registered electors			9,116		+1.3
	Conservative gain from Labour		Swing	+8.5

Bedminster

Bedminster
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Claire Warren *	981	33.6	–14.3
	Independent	Stewart Parkman	684	23.5	N/a
	Liberal Democrats	Julie Palmer	485	16.6	–2.3
	Conservative	Christian Simpson	474	16.3	–3.2
	Green	Peter Andrews	185	6.3	–3.9
	Socialist	Robin Clapp	107	3.7	+0.2
Majority			297	10.2	–18.3
Rejected ballots			3	0.1	–0.1
Turnout			2,919	33.5	+5.9
Registered electors			8,705		+1.0
	Labour hold		Swing	–18.9

Bishopston

Bishopston
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal Democrats	David Kitson *	1,717	52.3	+6.7
	Labour	Gerald Rosenberg	731	22.3	–14.3
	Conservative	Jonathan Thorne	365	11.1	+2.2
	Green	Martin Harvey	272	8.3	–0.5
	Socialist Alliance	Elisabeth Winkler	195	5.9	N/a
Majority			986	30.1	+21.1
Rejected ballots			4	0.1	–0.1
Turnout			3,284	36.6	–4.7
Registered electors			8,984		+1.4
	Liberal Democrats hold		Swing	+10.5

Bishopsworth

Bishopsworth
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Ronald Hodges *	1,756	58.3	–1.2
	Labour	Keith Yarwood	893	29.7	+0.8
	Liberal Democrats	Jo Carpenter	226	7.5	+2.1
	Green	Barrie Lewis	135	4.5	–1.7
Majority			863	28.7	–2.0
Rejected ballots			3	0.1	+0.0
Turnout			3,013	35.5	–6.2
Registered electors			8,483		–0.3
	Conservative hold		Swing	–1.0

Brislington East

Brislington East
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	William Martin *	1,149	44.6	–9.4
	Conservative	Vincent Mora	781	30.3	+5.3
	Liberal Democrats	Jeffery Exon	473	18.3	+7.5
	Green	David Coombes	100	3.9	–0.8
	Socialist Labour	Brian Corbett	75	2.9	–2.6
Majority			368	14.3	–14.7
Rejected ballots			4	0.2	–0.1
Turnout			2,582	29.3	–0.8
Registered electors			8,810		+1.0
	Labour hold		Swing	–7.4

Brislington West

Brislington West
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal Democrats	Peter Main *	1,492	54.7	+2.5
	Labour	Tony Poole	678	24.9	–3.4
	Conservative	Colin Bretherton	440	16.1	+0.3
	Green	Mary Wood	118	4.3	+0.6
Majority			814	29.8	+5.9
Rejected ballots			3	0.1	+0.1
Turnout			2,731	33.9	–2.7
Registered electors			8,046		+1.2
	Liberal Democrats hold		Swing	+3.0

Filwood

Filwood
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal Democrats	Ann Cooper	1,385	55.3	+16.3
	Labour	George Micklewright *	954	38.1	–12.3
	Conservative	Lesley Alexander	113	4.5	–2.0
	Green	Eamonn Murphy	33	1.3	N/a
	Socialist Alliance	Philip Jones	21	0.8	N/a
Majority			431	17.2	N/a
Rejected ballots			5	0.2	+0.0
Turnout			2,511	31.8	+4.1
Registered electors			7,906		–0.3
	Liberal Democrats gain from Labour		Swing	+14.3

Hartcliffe

Hartcliffe
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Royston Griffey	981	48.3	–9.7
	Conservative	Shirley Hodges	612	30.1	+7.1
	Liberal Democrats	Ian Cooper	370	18.2	+4.6
	Green	Maxine Gilman	67	3.3	–2.0
Majority			369	18.2	–16.8
Rejected ballots			4	0.2	+0.1
Turnout			2,034	24.7	–1.4
Registered electors			8,230		+1.4
	Labour hold		Swing	–8.4

Henbury

Henbury
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Claire Cook *	1,193	48.3	–9.0
	Conservative	Roy Pepworth	817	33.1	+2.3
	Liberal Democrats	Carol Knight	393	15.9	+4.0
	Green	Donald Brown	68	2.8	N/a
Majority			376	15.2	–11.3
Rejected ballots			5	0.2	+0.0
Turnout			2,476	33.6	–1.9
Registered electors			7,367		–0.2
	Labour hold		Swing	–5.7

Hengrove

Hengrove
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal Democrats	Mary Sykes *	1,481	44.4	+6.7
	Conservative	Adam Tayler	977	29.3	–1.0
	Labour	John Winterson	819	24.6	–5.3
	Green	Michael Crawford	56	1.7	–0.5
Majority			504	15.1	+7.7
Rejected ballots			3	0.1	–0.0
Turnout			3,336	37.8	+1.4
Registered electors			8,835		+0.7
	Liberal Democrats hold		Swing	+3.8

Henleaze

Henleaze
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal Democrats	Rosalie Brown *	2,400	59.9	+7.6
	Conservative	Christopher Windows	1,176	29.3	–4.1
	Labour	Keith Evans	284	7.1	–3.1
	Green	William McCaskie	147	3.7	–0.4
Majority			1,224	30.5	+11.8
Rejected ballots			5	0.1	+0.0
Turnout			4,012	49.5	–1.9
Registered electors			8,105		–0.5
	Liberal Democrats hold		Swing	+5.9

Horfield

Horfield
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Martin Kerry *	1,513	49.2	+5.1
	Labour	David Rees	931	30.2	–7.9
	Liberal Democrats	Andrew Ludlow	445	14.5	+0.8
	Green	Simon Glover	102	3.3	–0.9
	Socialist Alliance	Jonathan Kennedy	87	2.8	N/a
Majority			582	18.9	+13.0
Rejected ballots			7	0.2	+0.2
Turnout			3,085	35.8	–0.9
Registered electors			8,626		–0.8
	Conservative hold		Swing	+6.5

Kingsweston

Kingsweston
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	John Bees *	1,049	38.6	–1.6
	Liberal Democrats	Terence Thomas	827	30.4	+0.6
	Conservative	Michael Cobb	702	25.8	–0.3
	Green	John Hills	95	3.5	–0.4
	Socialist Alliance	Brian Drummond	48	1.8	N/a
Majority			222	8.2	–2.2
Rejected ballots			8	0.3	+0.3
Turnout			2,729	35.7	+0.5
Registered electors			7,636		+2.0
	Labour hold		Swing	–1.1

Knowle

Knowle
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal Democrats	Gary Hopkins	1,795	51.5	+25.7
	Labour	David Johnson	1,059	30.4	–7.9
	Conservative	Stuart Quayle	359	10.3	–11.5
	Green	Graham Davey	169	4.8	–6.4
	Socialist Alliance	Peter Wearden	105	3.0	N/a
Majority			736	21.1	N/a
Rejected ballots			10	0.3	+0.1
Turnout			3,497	42.1	+10.3
Registered electors			8,297		+0.7
	Liberal Democrats gain from Labour		Swing	+16.8

Lawrence Hill

This was a by election triggered by the resignation of sitting councilor John Channon and was for the remaining year of his term.

Lawrence Hill by election
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal Democrats	John Astley	1,204	48.4	+11.3
	Labour	Edmund Bramall	1,025	41.2	–2.7
	Conservative	Guy Dawe	115	4.6	–2.9
	Green	Jane Lewis	111	4.5	–1.4
	Socialist Labour	Giles Shorter	34	1.4	–4.2
Majority			179	7.2	N/a
Rejected ballots			14	0.6	+0.4
Turnout			2,503	27.6	+0.1
Registered electors			9,064		+4.8
	Liberal Democrats gain from Labour		Swing	+7.0

Lockleaze

This seat had been gained by the Liberal Democrats in a February 2000 by election, but is shown as a gain as compared to the 1999 election.

Lockleaze
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal Democrats	Sean Emmett *	1,492	56.8	+33.1
	Labour	Nichola Barton	797	30.3	–18.5
	Conservative	Matthew Stallabrass	236	9.0	–12.3
	Green	Vince Jones	51	1.9	–4.3
	Socialist	Roger Thomas	51	1.9	N/a
Majority			695	26.5	N/a
Rejected ballots			3	0.1	–0.0
Turnout			2,630	33.4	+5.0
Registered electors			7,871		–0.1
	Liberal Democrats gain from Labour		Swing	+25.8

Redland

Redland
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal Democrats	Sylvia Townsend *	1,486	46.4	+14.4
	Conservative	Alastair Watson	812	25.4	–1.9
	Labour	Kerry Barker	576	18.0	–10.5
	Green	Justin Quinnell	328	10.2	–2.1
Majority			674	21.0	+17.5
Rejected ballots			7	0.2	+0.2
Turnout			3,209	38.0	–3.2
Registered electors			8,444		–0.1
	Liberal Democrats hold		Swing	+8.1

Southmead

Southmead
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Jenny Smith *	940	48.8	–7.3
	Liberal Democrats	Shaun Jones	486	25.2	+5.7
	Conservative	Anthony Smith	434	22.5	+2.0
	Green	Geoff Collard	65	3.4	N/a
Majority			454	23.6	–14.6
Rejected ballots			10	0.5	+0.4
Turnout			1,935	25.0	+1.9
Registered electors			7,737		+1.2
	Labour hold		Swing	–6.5

Southville

Southville
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Matthew Symonds	1,285	44.9	–7.4
	Green	Charles Bolton	534	18.7	+6.7
	Conservative	Philip Cobbold	494	17.3	+0.2
	Liberal Democrats	Paul Elvin	442	15.5	–0.8
	Socialist Alliance	Jonathan Harris	105	3.7	N/a
Majority			751	26.3	–9.0
Rejected ballots			11	0.4	+0.2
Turnout			2,871	34.7	+2.9
Registered electors			8,270		+0.3
	Labour hold		Swing	–7.0

Stockwood

Stockwood
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	David Morris *	1,864	55.0	+8.9
	Labour	Lesley Mansell	920	27.2	–10.0
	Liberal Democrats	Jane Collins	505	14.9	+1.1
	Green	Samantha Thompson	98	2.9	–0.1
Majority			944	27.9	+18.9
Rejected ballots			53	1.5	+1.5
Turnout			3,440	40.4	–0.3
Registered electors			8,505		–0.6
	Conservative hold		Swing	+9.5

Stoke Bishop

Stoke Bishop
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	John Goulandris	2,118	66.5	+6.5
	Liberal Democrats	Gillian Donald	539	16.9	–4.6
	Labour	Dianne Manning	373	11.7	–1.2
	Green	Keith Wiltshire	153	4.8	–0.8
Majority			1,579	49.6	+11.1
Rejected ballots			5	0.2	+0.1
Turnout			3,188	39.1	+0.3
Registered electors			8,158		+0.5
	Conservative hold		Swing	+5.5

Westbury-on-Trym

Westbury-on-Trym
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Ashley Fox	2,240	49.1	–9.5
	Liberal Democrats	Nicholas Doddrell	1,847	40.5	+22.2
	Labour	Judith Sluglett	338	7.4	–10.4
	Green	John Devaney	133	2.9	–2.3
Majority			393	8.6	–31.7
Rejected ballots			3	0.1	–0.0
Turnout			4,561	55.1	+9.6
Registered electors			8,275		–1.5
	Conservative hold		Swing	–15.9

Whitchurch Park

Whitchurch Park
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Colin Smith	1,058	47.6	–10.6
	Conservative	Jonathan Hucker	620	27.9	+12.7
	Liberal Democrats	James Carpenter	464	20.9	+0.3
	Green	Mary Thomson	83	3.7	–2.5
Majority			438	19.7	–21.1
Rejected ballots			2	0.1	+0.1
Turnout			2,227	27.5	+1.3
Registered electors			8,099		–0.4
	Labour hold		Swing	–11.7

Windmill Hill

Windmill Hill
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Christopher Orlik *	1,005	41.0	–11.8
	Liberal Democrats	Joyce Cooper	487	19.9	+7.5
	Green	Patrick Hulme	405	16.5	+0.6
	Conservative	Graham Morris	361	14.7	+1.0
	Socialist Alliance	Arnie Nevin	126	5.1	N/a
	Socialist Labour	Katherine Cremer	67	2.7	N/a
Majority			518	21.1	–22.0
Rejected ballots			7	0.3	+0.1
Turnout			2,458	27.0	–1.0
Registered electors			9,114		+3.1
	Labour hold		Swing	–9.6

References

↑ "Labour's backroom boy takes the helm". Western Daily Press. 5 May 1997. p. 13. Retrieved 29 July 2026.
↑ "Lib Dems Choose New Leader". Bristol Evening Post. 15 May 1999. p. 29. Retrieved 30 July 2026.
↑ "Peter to lead the Tories". Bristol Evening Post. 14 January 1999. p. 5. Retrieved 30 July 2026.
↑ "Bristol City Council Election Results for 2 May 2002". Bristol City Council. Retrieved 16 April 2016.
↑ Colin Rallings; Michael Thrasher. "Bristol City Council Election Results 1995-2011" (PDF). electionscentre.co.uk. The Elections Centre Plymouth University. Retrieved 29 July 2026.

[1] "Labour's backroom boy takes the helm". Western Daily Press. 5 May 1997. p. 13. Retrieved 29 July 2026.

[2] "Lib Dems Choose New Leader". Bristol Evening Post. 15 May 1999. p. 29. Retrieved 30 July 2026.

[3] "Peter to lead the Tories". Bristol Evening Post. 14 January 1999. p. 5. Retrieved 30 July 2026.

[4] "Bristol City Council Election Results for 2 May 2002". Bristol City Council. Retrieved 16 April 2016.

[5] Colin Rallings; Michael Thrasher. "Bristol City Council Election Results 1995-2011" (PDF). electionscentre.co.uk. The Elections Centre Plymouth University. Retrieved 29 July 2026.

[1]

[2]

[3]

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[5]

(2001 ←) 2002 United Kingdom local elections (→ 2003)
London boroughs	Barking and Dagenham Barnet Bexley Brent Bromley Camden Croydon Ealing Enfield Greenwich Hackney Hammersmith and Fulham Haringey Harrow Havering Hillingdon Hounslow Islington Kensington and Chelsea Kingston upon Thames Lambeth Lewisham Merton Newham Redbridge Richmond upon Thames Southwark Sutton Tower Hamlets Waltham Forest Wandsworth Westminster
Metropolitan boroughs	Barnsley Birmingham Bolton Bradford Bury Calderdale Coventry Doncaster Dudley Gateshead Kirklees Knowsley Leeds Liverpool Manchester Newcastle upon Tyne North Tyneside Oldham Rochdale Rotherham Salford Sandwell Sefton Sheffield Solihull South Tyneside St Helens Stockport Sunderland Tameside Trafford Wakefield Walsall Wigan Wirral Wolverhampton
Unitary authorities	Blackburn with Darwen Bristol Derby Halton Hartlepool Kingston upon Hull Milton Keynes Peterborough Portsmouth Reading Slough Southampton Southend-on-Sea Stoke-on-Trent Swindon Thurrock Warrington Wokingham
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Council elections in Bristol
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See also: Wards Boundary changes