 | 'In September 2002 there was a by-election in Durn ward, Aberdeenshire. ... The turnout in a postal ballot was 66 per cent, the highest ever in a postal pilot. That was in contrast to another election that day to the same council, in which the turnout was a mere 36 per cent.' Russell Brown MP in Hansard, 21 st October 2003. |  |
A by-election was held in the Durn ward of Aberdeenshire Councilon the 19 th September 2002. The ward was held by the SNP, but won by Lib Dem John Mair at the fourth attempt in May 2003.
Durn is in the Banff & Buchan Westminster parliamentary seat (held by the Scottish National Party's Alex Salmond MP) and in the Banff & Buchan Scottish parliamentary seat (held by the Scottish National Party's Stewart Stevenson MSP).
| 19 th September 2002 By-election Turnout 66.0 % (- 3.5 %) | |||||
| Candidate | Logo | Party | Votes | % | % change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Iain W. Gray |  |
Scottish National Party | 636 | 42.0 % | - 15.0 % |
| John A. Mair |  |
Liberal Democrat | 598 | 39.5 % | - 3.5 % |
| Alexander Buchan |  |
Independent | 212 | 14.0 % | (+ 14.0 %) |
| Gwendolin E. Walker |  |
Conservative | 67 | 4.8 % | (+ 4.8 %) |
| Scottish National Party hold | |
Scottish National Party majority | 38 | 2.5 % | - 11.5 % |
| 6 th May 1999 Turnout 62.5 % (+ 12.1 %) | |||||
| Candidate | Logo | Party | Votes | % | % change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sandra Taylor | |
Scottish National Party | 819 | 57.0 % | - 8.8 % |
| John A. Mair | |
Liberal Democrat | 617 | 43.0 % | (+ 43.0 %) / + 8.8 % |
| Scottish National Party hold | |
Scottish National Party majority | 202 | 14.0 % | - 17.4 % |
| 6 th April 1995 Turnout 50.4 % | |||||
| Candidate | Logo | Party | Votes | % | % change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ian Taylor | |
Scottish National Party | 1,186 | 65.8 % | |
| John A. Mair | |
Independent | 617 | 34.2 % | |
| Scottish National Party win | |
Scottish National Party majority | 569 | 31.6 % | |
Mr. Russell Brown (Dumfries): I shall briefly consider three previous postal pilots in Scotland. In April 2002 the first pilot took place in a ward of Stirling council. The turnout was more than 63 per cent., far higher than the turnout at the other council by-election held on the same day. In September 2002 there was a by-election in Durn ward, Aberdeenshire. The hon. Member for West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine (Sir Robert Smith) has left the Chamber, but he will know about that one. The turnout in a postal ballot was 66 per cent, the highest ever in a postal pilot. That was in contrast to another election that day to the same council, in which the turnout was a mere 36 per cent. In November 2002 in a ward in the Scottish Borders, there was a turnout of 65.8 per cent., which was up 3.1 per cent. on the turnout for the 1999 election.
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