Shetland Islands Council elections
Shetland Islands Council in Scotland holds elections every five years, previously holding them every four years from its creation as a single-tier authority in 1995 to 2007.
Council elections
As an islands council
| Year | Labour | Liberal Democrats | Shetland Movement | Independent |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1974 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 18 |
| 1978[a] | 4 | 0 | 0 | 21 |
| 1982 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 23 |
| 1986 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 16 |
| 1990 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 17[b] |
| 1994[c] | 1 | 2 | 6 | 17[b] |
As a unitary authority
| Year | Green | Labour | SNP | Liberal Democrats | Independent |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 13[a] |
| 2003 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 17 |
| 2007[b] | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 22 |
| 2012 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 22 |
| 2017[c] | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 21 |
| 2022[d] | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 20[e] |
- ^ Includes 1 Independent Liberal.
- ^ Change to single transferable vote system and new ward boundaries.
- ^ New ward boundaries.[3]
- ^ New ward boundaries.[4]
- ^ Includes 1 seat vacant through insufficient nominations, filled at a by-election on 4 August.[5]
Results maps
-
1978 results map
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1982 results map
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1986 results map
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1990 results map
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1999 results map
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2003 results map
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2007 results map
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2012 results map
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2017 results map
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2022 results map
By-elections
2007-2012
| Party | Candidate | FPv% | Count | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | ||||
| Independent | Jonathan Wills | 25.1 | 332 | 335 | 350 | 361 | 402 | 462 | 576 | |
| Independent | Peter Campbell | 17.6 | 233 | 240 | 246 | 272 | 317 | 370 | 465 | |
| Independent | Lyle Williamson | 17.2 | 228 | 229 | 234 | 245 | 286 | 337 | ||
| Independent | Robbie Leith | 13.8 | 183 | 188 | 204 | 216 | 228 | |||
| Conservative | Maurice Mullay | 12.8 | 169 | 171 | 177 | 199 | ||||
| Independent | Geoff Feather | 6.6 | 87 | 91 | 96 | |||||
| Independent | Larry Deyell | 4.8 | 63 | 66 | ||||||
| Independent | Vic Thomas | 2.2 | 29 | |||||||
| Independent hold | ||||||||||
| Electorate: 3,382 Valid: 1,324 Spoilt: 7 Quota: 663 Turnout: 1,331 | ||||||||||
| Party | Candidate | FPv% | Count | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | ||||
| Independent | David Sandison | 48.4 | 332 | 352 | |
| Independent | Stephen Morgan | 16.9 | 116 | 124 | |
| Independent | Ian Scott | 15.6 | 107 | 115 | |
| Independent | Robert Williamson | 10.9 | 75 | 81 | |
| Conservative | Clive Richardson | 4.2 | 29 | ||
| Independent | Scotty van der Tol | 3.9 | 27 | ||
| Independent hold | |||||
| Electorate: 2,300 Valid: 686 Spoilt: 4 Quota: 344 Turnout: 690 | |||||
2022-2027
| Party | Candidate | FPv% | Count | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ||||
| Independent | Robert Thomson | 68.6 | 680 | |
| Independent | Sonia Robertson | 10.7 | 106 | |
| Independent | Gary Cleaver | 10.1 | 100 | |
| Independent | Marie Williamson | 9.3 | 92 | |
| Independent | Stewart Douglas | 1.3 | 13 | |
| Independent gain from vacancy | ||||
| Valid: 991 Spoilt: 6 Quota: 496 Turnout: 997 | ||||
| Party | Candidate | FPv% | Count | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ||||
| Independent | Mark Robinson | 76.4 | 375 | |
| Green | Debra Nicolson | 13.6 | 67 | |
| SNP | Zara Pennington | 10.0 | 49 | |
| Independent hold | ||||
| Valid: 491 Spoilt: 2 Quota: 246 Turnout: 493 | ||||
| Party | Candidate | FPv% | Count | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ||||
| Independent | Andrew Hall | 90.4 | 887 | |
| Independent | Natasha Cornick | 9.6 | 94 | |
| Independent gain from Labour | ||||
| Valid: 981 Spoilt: 5 Quota: 492 Turnout: 986 | ||||
References
- ^ "Initial Statutory Reviews of Electoral Arrangements". National Records of Scotland. Retrieved 21 July 2025.
- ^ "Second Statutory Reviews of Electoral Arrangements". National Records of Scotland. Retrieved 6 March 2025.
- ^ "Fifth Statutory Review of Electoral Arrangements Final Recommendations - Shetland Islands Council Area" (PDF). Local Government Boundary Commission for Scotland. Retrieved 24 February 2025.
- ^ "Shetland Islands Council Area Final Proposals" (PDF). Local Government Boundary Commission for Scotland. Retrieved 24 February 2025.
- ^ "Local Elections Archive Project — North Isles Ward". www.andrewteale.me.uk. Retrieved 27 October 2025.
- ^ "Lerwick South (Shetland) 28 th February 2008". Archived from the original on 29 August 2008. Retrieved 28 January 2012.
- ^ "www.kristoferkeane.co.uk – Scottish Elections :: Shetland Central By-Election 2011". Archived from the original on 3 August 2012. Retrieved 29 January 2012.
- ^ "Declaration of Results Report North Isles Ward". Shetland Islands Council. 5 August 2022. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
- ^ "Declaration of Results Ward 3 Shetland West". Shetland Islands Council. 18 November 2022. Retrieved 19 October 2024.
- ^ "Shetland Islands Council – Shetland North Ward - By-Election – 23 January 2025". Shetland Islands Council. Retrieved 27 October 2025.