1991 Epping Forest District Council election|
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First party
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Second party
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Third party
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|
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| Party
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Conservative
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Labour
|
Loughton Residents
|
| Last election
|
36 seats, 39.7%
|
13 seats, 31.4%
|
7 seats, 8.9%
|
| Seats before
|
33
|
13
|
7
|
| Seats after
|
30
|
14
|
7
|
| Seat change
|
6
|
1
|
|
| Popular vote
|
10,500
|
8,722
|
1,509
|
| Percentage
|
36.9%
|
30.6%
|
5.3%
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| Swing
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2.5%
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0.8%
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1.3%
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Fourth party
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Fifth party
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Sixth party
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|
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| Party
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Liberal Democrats
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SDP
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Epping Residents
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| Last election
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0 seat, 11.9%
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1 seat, 3.5% (as the old SDP)
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N/A
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| Seats before
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0
|
1
|
2 [a]
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| Seats after
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2
|
2
|
1
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| Seat change
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2
|
1
|
1
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| Popular vote
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4,508
|
1,340
|
1,163
|
| Percentage
|
15.8%
|
4.7%
|
4.0%
|
| Swing
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3.9%
|
1.2%
|
N/A
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|
|
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Seventh party
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Eighth party
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| Party
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Independent
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Ind. Conservative
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| Last election
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N/A
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N/A
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| Seats before
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2 [b]
|
1
|
| Seats after
|
2
|
1
|
| Seat change
|
1
|
|
| Popular vote
|
1,119
|
N/A
|
| Percentage
|
3.9%
|
N/A
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| Swing
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N/A
|
N/A
| |
.png) Winner of each seat at the 1991 Epping Forest District Council election |
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The 1991 Epping Forest District Council election took place on 2 May 1991 to elect members of Epping Forest District Council in Essex, England. 20 members of Epping Forest District Council in Essex were elected. The council remained under Conservative majority control.
Background
The 1991 Epping Forest District Council election took place during a period of ongoing economic difficulty and political transition in the United Kingdom. The country remained in recession, with unemployment reaching 2,175,000 by May, the highest level since late 1988, and exceeding the European average for the first time since 1987. Many voters were concerned about job security, particularly in manufacturing and financial services, as redundancies continued to rise.
Nationally, the Conservative government, now led by Prime Minister John Major, was managing the unpopular legacy of the Community Charge, or "poll tax," which had sparked protests, non-payment campaigns, and riots in the previous year. The government had announced plans to replace it with the Council Tax in 1993, an effort to mitigate public dissatisfaction while maintaining local government finance. Opinion polls in the months leading up to the election showed Labour gaining ground, with one MORI poll in May placing Labour six points ahead of the Conservatives. The Liberal Democrats were also consolidating support, having trebled their national vote share in the fifteen months prior.
Local political issues also reflected these national trends. Voters in Epping Forest were presented with competitive contests across multiple wards, with seats contested by Conservatives, Labour, Liberal Democrats, the remnants of the Social Democrats, and local Residents or Ratepayers groups.
Summary
[1]
| 1991 Epping Forest District Council election
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| Party
|
This election
|
Full council
|
This election
|
| Seats
|
Net
|
Seats %
|
Other
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Total
|
Total %
|
Votes
|
Votes %
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+/−
|
|
|
Conservative
|
8
|
6
|
40.0
|
22
|
30
|
50.8
|
10,500
|
36.9
|
2.5
|
|
|
Labour
|
5
|
1
|
25.0
|
8
|
13
|
22.0
|
8,722
|
30.6
|
0.8
|
|
|
Loughton Residents
|
1
|
|
5.0
|
6
|
7
|
11.8
|
1,509
|
5.3
|
1.3
|
|
|
Liberal Democrats
|
2
|
2
|
10.0
|
|
3
|
5.0
|
4,508
|
15.8
|
3.9
|
|
|
SDP
|
1
|
1
|
5.0
|
1
|
2
|
3.3
|
1,340
|
4.7
|
1.2
|
|
|
Epping Residents
|
1
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0.0
|
1,163
|
4.0
|
N/A
|
|
|
Independent
|
1
|
1
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5.0
|
1
|
2
|
1.6
|
1,119
|
3.9
|
N/A
|
|
|
Ind. Conservative
|
1
|
|
5.0
|
0
|
1
|
1.6
|
N/A
|
N/A
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N/A
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Results
Source:[2]
Buckhurst Hill East
Buckhurst Hill West
Chipping Ongar
Debden Green
Epping Hemnall
Epping Lindsey
Grange Hill
Greensted & Marden Ash
High Beech
Lambourne
Loughton Roding
Loughton St. Johns
Moreton & Matching
Nazeing
North Weald Bassett
Shelley
Waltham Abbey East
Waltham Abbey Paternoster
Waltham Abbey West
- ^ Two Epping councillors, Jones and A. O'Brien resigned the whip earlier that year.
- ^ Nazeing Councillor Downes resigned from the party earlier that year to sit as an Independent alongside Roydon Councillor Easton.
References