
The2003 Rushmoor Council election took place on 1 May 2003 to elect members ofRushmoorBorough Council inHampshire,England. One third of the council was up for election and theConservative Party stayed in overall control of the council.[1]
After the election, the composition of the council was:
One third of the seats were being elected with the third placedcouncillor in the2002 election having their seat be contested.[3] While a couple of former councillors were attempting to win seats back, George Paparesti for theLiberal Democrats in Manor Park and Stella Olivier forLabour in Grange,[3] Labour's group leader Andy Straker stood down at the election and did not defend his seat in North Town.[4] Apart from the 3 main political parties there were also 3Green, 1English Democrat and 2independent candidates.[3]
Rushmoor was one of 18 councils which trialedelectronic voting in the2003 local elections.[5]
The results saw no seats change hands with the Conservatives keeping their majority on the council.[6] The closest results came in St Mark'sward where Conservative Diane Bedford held on by 30 votes over the Liberal Democrats after a recount and in Manor Park where again the Conservatives finished 47 votes ahead of the Liberal Democrats.[6] Labour held their 2 seats in Heron Wood and North Town with reduced majorities but did not make any gains.[6] Overallturnout in the election was 31%.[7]
Following the election John Marsh remained the leader of the council and Conservatives after defeating a challenge from within the Conservative group by 14 votes to 11.[8] Meanwhile, Keith Dibble became the new leader of the Labour group on the council.[9]
| Party | Seats | Gains | Losses | Net gain/loss | Seats % | Votes % | Votes | +/− | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 64.3 | 44.8 | 8,192 | -0.8% | |
| Liberal Democrats | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 21.4 | 33.2 | 6,056 | +4.7% | |
| Labour | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14.3 | 17.5 | 3,197 | -1.7% | |
| Independent | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2.4 | 441 | -2.1% | |
| Green | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.4 | 257 | -0.8% | |
| English Democrat | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.7 | 123 | +0.7% | |
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liberal Democrats | Brian Jupp | 691 | 49.2 | ||
| Conservative | David Thomas | 545 | 38.8 | ||
| Labour | Edward Shelton | 130 | 9.3 | ||
| Green | James Page | 39 | 2.8 | ||
| Majority | 146 | 10.4 | |||
| Turnout | 1,405 | 34.0 | |||
| Liberal Democratshold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | John Wall | 940 | 56.2 | ||
| Liberal Democrats | Stephen Chowns | 534 | 31.9 | ||
| Labour | Christopher Wright | 199 | 11.9 | ||
| Majority | 406 | 24.3 | |||
| Turnout | 1,673 | 37.9 | |||
| Conservativehold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Kenneth Muschamp | 596 | 50.5 | ||
| Liberal Democrats | Richard Shaw | 424 | 35.9 | ||
| Labour | Martin Coule | 160 | 13.6 | ||
| Majority | 172 | 14.6 | |||
| Turnout | 1,180 | 29.1 | |||
| Conservativehold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Jon Weston | 738 | 51.9 | ||
| Labour | Stella Olivier | 369 | 25.9 | ||
| Liberal Democrats | Hazel Manning | 229 | 16.1 | ||
| Independent | Arthur Pendragon | 86 | 6.0 | ||
| Majority | 369 | 26.0 | |||
| Turnout | 1,422 | 35.3 | |||
| Conservativehold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Donald Cappleman | 545 | 47.0 | ||
| Conservative | Andrew Hankins | 408 | 35.2 | ||
| Liberal Democrats | Ian Colpus | 206 | 17.8 | ||
| Majority | 137 | 11.8 | |||
| Turnout | 1,159 | 27.0 | |||
| Labourhold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Roland Dibbs | 742 | 46.4 | ||
| Liberal Democrats | Martin Kaye | 382 | 23.9 | ||
| Independent | Keith Parkins | 355 | 22.2 | ||
| Labour | William Tootill | 119 | 7.4 | ||
| Majority | 360 | 22.5 | |||
| Turnout | 1,598 | 39.4 | |||
| Conservativehold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Peter Crerar | 654 | 45.2 | ||
| Liberal Democrats | George Paparesti | 607 | 41.9 | ||
| Labour | June Smith | 187 | 12.9 | ||
| Majority | 47 | 3.3 | |||
| Turnout | 1,448 | 33.7 | |||
| Conservativehold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liberal Democrats | Neville Dewey | 587 | 57.7 | ||
| Labour | Clive Grattan | 236 | 23.2 | ||
| Conservative | Roderick Baulk | 195 | 19.2 | ||
| Majority | 351 | 34.5 | |||
| Turnout | 1,018 | 25.6 | |||
| Liberal Democratshold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Carolyne Culver | 498 | 41.3 | ||
| Conservative | Neil Watkin | 376 | 31.2 | ||
| Liberal Democrats | Peter Sandy | 251 | 20.8 | ||
| Green | Adam Stacey | 81 | 6.7 | ||
| Majority | 122 | 10.1 | |||
| Turnout | 1,206 | 27.8 | |||
| Labourhold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Mohammad Choudhary | 710 | 53.8 | ||
| Liberal Democrats | Philip Thompson | 287 | 21.8 | ||
| Labour | Jill Clark | 239 | 18.1 | ||
| Green | Julia Fowler | 83 | 6.3 | ||
| Majority | 423 | 32.0 | |||
| Turnout | 1,319 | 32.7 | |||
| Conservativehold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Graham Tucker | 676 | 62.4 | ||
| Liberal Democrats | Martine Howell | 408 | 37.6 | ||
| Majority | 268 | 24.8 | |||
| Turnout | 1,084 | 25.1 | |||
| Conservativehold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Diane Bedford | 648 | 45.8 | ||
| Liberal Democrats | Alistair Mackie | 618 | 43.7 | ||
| Labour | Barry Jones | 149 | 10.5 | ||
| Majority | 30 | 2.1 | |||
| Turnout | 1,415 | 31.4 | |||
| Conservativehold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Francis Williams | 383 | 47.6 | ||
| Labour | Robert Sullivan | 222 | 27.6 | ||
| Liberal Democrats | Nickolaus Burfield | 145 | 18.0 | ||
| Green | Samantha Stacey | 54 | 6.7 | ||
| Majority | 161 | 20.0 | |||
| Turnout | 804 | 18.8 | |||
| Conservativehold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liberal Democrats | Shaun Murphy | 687 | 44.8 | ||
| Conservative | Stephen Masterson | 581 | 37.9 | ||
| Labour | Philip Collins | 144 | 9.4 | ||
| English Democrat | Gary Cowd | 123 | 8.0 | ||
| Majority | 106 | 6.9 | |||
| Turnout | 1,535 | 37.2 | |||
| Liberal Democratshold | Swing | ||||
| Preceded by 2002 Rushmoor Council election | Rushmoor local elections | Succeeded by 2004 Rushmoor Council election |