Poll hopefuls aiming to tick all the right boxes
East Renfrewshire council election candidates revealed
There are 42 candidates campaigning for 18 seats across five wards on East Renfrewshire Council in May’s local government elections.
No political party secured an overall majority at the last vote in 2017, with the administration made up of a coalition of SNP, Labour and independent councillor Danny Devlin.
The Conservatives had the largest number of councillors, with six, until Stewart Miller resigned from the party in September 2020 and sat as an independent.
Since then, there have been five Conservatives, five SNP members, four from Labour and four independent councillors.
Ten seats are needed to claim a majority.
Labour had eight councillors before losing four seats at the 2017 election and will be hoping to improve in 2022.
Provost Jim Fletcher, Labour, isn’t standing for re-election and neither are: Councillor Jim Swift (Conservative), Charlie Gilbert (Conservative), Barbara Grant (Conservative) and Alan Lafferty (Labour). Labour’s Paul O’Kane also isn’t standing after he was elected to Holyrood last year.
Council leader Tony Buchanan, SNP, is one of the 12 councillors hoping to be re-elected on May 5.
Ballot papers will include representatives from the SNP, Labour, Conservatives, Greens, Liberal Democrats, Alba, Independence for Scotland Party, Scottish Family Party and Freedom Alliance.
There are also independents standing in three of the five wards.
Since 2007, councillors in Scotland have been elected using the Single Transferable Vote (STV) system.
This allows voters to express a preference for more than one candidate by ranking them in order.
Polling stations will be open from 7am to 10pm on May 5. Voters should make sure they know where they need to go to cast their vote by checking their poll card in advance
They have until Monday, April 18 to register to vote.
The full list of candidates is listed:
• Ward 1 - Barrhead, Liboside and Uplawmoor (four councillors to be elected).
Paul Aitken (Independent) Neil Anderson (Alba)
Angela Convery (SNP)
Betty Cunningham (Labour) Danny Devlin (Independent) Chris Lundsay (SNP)
Greg Turner (Conservative) Frank Wilson (Greens).
• Ward 2 - Newton Mearns North and Neilston (three councillors to be elected).
Tony Buchanan (SNP) Farooq Choudhry (Conservative)
Adrian Egglestone (Greens) Carol McKenzie (Alba)
Derek McMillan (Freedom Alliance)
Andrew Morrison
(Conservative)
Owen O’Donnell (Labour) Maria Reid (Scottish Family Party).
• Ward 3 - Giffnock and Thornliebank (three councillors to be elected).
George Gebbie (Alba)
Colm Merrick (SNP)
Mary Montague (Labour)
Alice Roy (Independent)
Karen Sharkey (Greens)
Allan Steele (Independent) Gordon Wallace (Conservative).
• Ward 4 - Clarkston, Netherlee and Williamwood (four councillors to be elected).
Kate Campbell (Conservative) Gerald Edwards (Conservative) Annette Ireland (SNP)
Gordon Keenan (Greens) David Macdonald (Independent)
David Tam McDonald (SNP) Stewart Miller (Independent) Katie Pragnell (Labour) Daphne Vlastari (Liberal Democrats)
Colette Walker (Independence for Scotland Party).
• Ward 5 - Newton Mearns South and Eaglesham (four councillors to be elected). Andrew Anderson (Labour) Caroline Bamforth (SNP)
Paul Edlin (Conservative)
Jim McLean (Conservative) Victoria Palmer-Dyer (Greens) Luke Reid (Scottish Family Party)
Amer Siddiqui (Alba)
Paul Smith (Conservative) Mark Turnbull (Freedom Alliance).