1998 Croydon London Borough Council election

Croydon Council Election, 1998
← 1994 7 May 1998 2002 →
All 70 seats to Croydon London Borough Council
36 seats needed for a majority
  First party Second party Third party
 
Leader Valerie Shawcross Unknown Unknown
Party Labour Conservative Liberal Democrats
Leader's seat New Addington
Last election 40 seats 30 seats 0 seats
Seats before 40
Seats won 38 31 1
Seat change Decrease 2 Increase 1 Increase 1
Percentage 38.2% 47.5% 12.1%
Map of the results of the 1998 Croydon Council election. Conservatives in blue and Labour in red.
Leader of the Council before election

Valerie Shawcross
Labour

Elected Leader

Valerie Shawcross
Labour

Elections to Croydon Council in London, England were held on 7 May 1998. The whole council was up for election and the Labour Party stayed in overall control of the council.[1] For the first time in a local election two polling stations were situated in supermarkets.[2]

Before the election the council had been seen as a top target for the Conservatives who only needed a small swing of 2 per cent to take control.[3] The Labour party had taken control of the council for the first time in the council's history in the previous election in 1994.[4] The removal of mounted patrols from parks and an increase in nursery places were seen as important issues in the election.[5] Both main parties concentrated on trying to get their vote out and were targeting several key wards.[4]

  1. ^ Riddell, Peter (9 May 1998). "Apathy the winner in struggle between new and old Labour". The Times. p. 46.
  2. ^ Travis, Alan (8 May 1998). "London leans to independent mayor improving life in the capital". The Guardian. Retrieved 26 April 2009.
  3. ^ "Labour's first big test approaches". BBC Online. 3 May 1998. Retrieved 26 April 2009.
  4. ^ a b Ward, Lucy (4 May 1998). "When sofa apathy is party enemy No.1, it's all down to swinging the key wards Local elections: In Croydon both sides are concentrating on where they hope it will do most good. Lucy Ward reports". The Guardian. p. 4.
  5. ^ "Councils of war: the 12 key town halls they're fighting for". Evening Standard. 6 May 1998. p. 19.