London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Sunday, Nov 09, 2025

Scottish council elections 2022: SNP finishes as biggest party

Scottish council elections 2022: SNP finishes as biggest party

The SNP has again finished as the biggest party in the Scottish council elections - with Labour finishing second after the Conservatives suffered big losses.

The SNP secured an overall majority in Dundee, while Labour won control of West Dunbartonshire.

But the Conservatives lost more than 60 councillors across the country.

Party leader Douglas Ross said he believed public anger over Partygate had played a big part.

More than 1,200 councillors have been elected across the country's 32 councils.

Each council is divided into smaller areas known as wards, with every ward electing up to five councillors.

The SNP recorded strong results in many areas of the country, increasing its total number of councillors by 22 to 453.

The party won 15 of the 29 seats to take control of Dundee and gained four seats in neighbouring Angus to become the largest party from Labour.

SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon, the country's first minister, said the result was a "quite incredible outcome" for her party after 15 years in government.

She added: "We have not only won the election - an eighth consecutive election victory since I've been leader - but won it overwhelmingly.

"We have increased our share of the vote and the number of councillors we have and I think we're going to be the largest party in more councils than before."

Labour - which finished third behind the SNP and Conservatives in 2017 - picked up an additional 20 seats and finished well ahead of the Tories on 282 seats to 214.

The party won an overall majority in West Dunbartonshire, where the SNP had previously been the largest party and had formed the administration, after returning 12 councillors - four more than previously.

No party held a majority in any local authority area in Scotland after the last election.

Labour had been aiming to overtake the SNP as the largest party in Glasgow after picking up seats in the early results, but fell one seat short - with the SNP on 37 and Labour 36.

Leader Anas Sarwar said the results were the best Scottish Labour had seen in a decade, with his party finishing the day "comfortably" in second place across Scotland as a whole.

The Conservatives finished second last time - but finished well behind Labour in third place this time


But the Conservatives lost 63 seats, with their share of the vote falling by more than 10% in several wards.

Scottish Conservative leader Douglas Ross said he was "deeply disappointed" by the results, which he said had seen the public send a clear message that "they are not happy with the prime minister, they are not happy with partygate".

He refused to call for Boris Johnson to resign, saying the situation in Ukraine called for stability in the UK government.

There was better news for the Conservatives in Moray, where they gained three seats to overtake the SNP as the largest party.


We've got used to the SNP winning elections in Scotland. In this contest they continue to resist electoral gravity. The party has seats and has won an 11th successive national victory.

They are not the only party with something to celebrate. After years of decline, Labour has also made gains including taking overall control of West Dunbartonshire council.

Labour has regained second place from the Conservatives, who have suffered significant losses and seem to be taking a bigger hit in Scotland than England.

Some Scottish Tories are blaming Boris Johnson and partygate, with others highlighting the Scottish party leader, Douglas Ross's flip-flop over whether the PM should resign.

The Liberal Democrats have also picked up seats as have the Greens who seem to have benefited from their power-sharing deal with the SNP in the Scottish government.

The Scottish Greens won their first seat in the Scottish Borders and almost doubled their total number of councillors across the country to 35.

Green candidate Holly Bruce finished first in the ward of the SNP's Susan Aitken, who was the Glasgow City Council leader - although Ms Aitken was also elected after finishing with the second-highest number of first preference votes.

The Liberal Democrats also done better than expected, winning an additional 20 seats across the country to take their total to 87, but Alex Salmond's Alba Party failed to have any of its candidates elected.

Meanwhile, the SNP's Susan Thomson and Frances Murray were elected the Western Isles' first female councillors since 2012.

Labour leader Anas Sarwar said his party's result was its best in a decade


Although the number of councillors elected for each party is now known, it will probably be next week before it becomes clear who will have control over most councils.

This is because in many councils no party has won a majority of seats and so groups of councillors will work together to form coalitions. It can take a few days for these arrangements to be made.

Local elections were also held in England and Wales on Thursday, and voters in Northern Ireland were being asked to elect their next government.


Council election results 'incredible outcome', say Sturgeon


Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Tom Cruise Arrives by Helicopter at UK Scientology Fundraiser Amid Local Protests
Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson Face Fresh UK Probes Amid Royal Fallout
Mothers Link Teen Suicides to AI Chatbots in Growing Legal Battle
UK Government to Mirror Denmark’s Tough Immigration Framework in Major Policy Shift
UK Government Turns to Denmark-Style Immigration Reforms to Overhaul Border Rules
UK Chancellor Warned Against Cutting Insulation Funding as Budget Looms
UK Tenant Complaints Hit Record Levels as Rental Sector Faces Mounting Pressure
Apple to Pay Google About One Billion Dollars Annually for Gemini AI to Power Next-Generation Siri
UK Signals Major Shift as Nuclear Arms Race Looms
BBC’s « Celebrity Traitors UK » Finale Breaks Records with 11.1 Million Viewers
UK Spy Case Collapse Highlights Implications for UK-Taiwan Strategic Alignment
On the Road to the Oscars? Meghan Markle to Star in a New Film
A Vote Worth a Trillion Dollars: Elon Musk’s Defining Day
AI Researchers Claim Human-Level General Intelligence Is Already Here
President Donald Trump Challenges Nigeria with Military Options Over Alleged Christian Killings
Nancy Pelosi Finally Announces She Will Not Seek Re-Election, Signalling End of Long Congressional Career
UK Pre-Budget Blues and Rate-Cut Concerns Pile Pressure on Pound
ITV Warns of Nine-Per-Cent Drop in Q4 Advertising Revenue Amid Budget Uncertainty
National Grid Posts Slightly Stronger-Than-Expected Half-Year Profit as Regulatory Investments Drive Growth
UK Business Lobby Urges Reeves to Break Tax Pledges and Build Fiscal Headroom
UK to Launch Consultation on Stablecoin Regulation on November 10
UK Savers Rush to Withdraw Pension Cash Ahead of Budget Amid Tax-Change Fears
Massive Spoilers Emerge from MAFS UK 2025: Couple Swaps, Dating App Leaks and Reunion Bombshells
Kurdish-led Crime Network Operates UK Mini-Marts to Exploit Migrants and Sell Illicit Goods
UK Income Tax Hike Could Trigger £1 Billion Cut to Scotland’s Budget, Warns Finance Secretary
Tommy Robinson Acquitted of Terror-related Charge After Phone PIN Dispute
Boris Johnson Condemns Western Support for Hamas at Jewish Community Conference
HII Welcomes UK’s Westley Group to Strengthen AUKUS Submarine Supply Chain
Tragedy in Serbia: Coach Mladen Žižović Collapses During Match and Dies at 44
Diplo Says He Dated Katy Perry — and Justin Trudeau
Dick Cheney, Former U.S. Vice President, Dies at 84
Trump Calls Title Removal of Andrew ‘Tragic Situation’ Amid Royal Fallout
UK Bonds Rally as Chancellor Reeves Briefs Markets Ahead of November Budget
UK Report Backs Generational Smoking Ban Ahead of Tobacco & Vapes Bill Review
UK’s Domino’s Pizza Group Reports Modest Like-for-Like Sales Growth in Q3
UK Supplies Additional Storm Shadow Missiles to Ukraine as Trump Alleges Russian Underground Nuclear Tests
High-Profile Broodmare Puca Sells for Five Million Dollars at Fasig-Tipton ‘Night of the Stars’
Wilt Chamberlain’s One-of-a-Kind ‘Searcher 1’ Supercar Heads to Auction
Erling Haaland’s Remarkable Run: 13 Premier League Goals in 10 Matches and Eyes on History
UK Labour Peer Warns of Emerging ‘Constituency for Hating Jews’ in Britain
UK Home Secretary Admits Loss of Border Control, Warns Public Trust at Risk
President Trump Expresses Sympathy for UK Royal Family After Title Stripping of Prince Andrew
Former Prince Andrew to Lose His Last Military Title as King Charles Moves to End His Public Role
King Charles Relocates Andrew to Sandringham Estate and Strips Titles Amid Epstein Fallout
Two Arrested After Mass Stabbing on UK Train Leaves Ten Hospitalised
Glamour UK Says ‘Stay Mad Jo x’ After Really Big Rowling Backlash
Former Prince Prince Andrew Faces Possible U.S. Congressional Appearance Over Jeffrey Epstein Inquiry
UK Faces £20 Billion Productivity Shortfall as Brexit’s Impact Deepens
UK Chancellor Rachel Reeves Eyes New Council-Tax Bands for High-Value Homes
UK Braces for Major Storm with Snow, Heavy Rain and Winds as High as 769 Miles Wide
×