2017 Aberdeenshire Council election

2017 Aberdeenshire Council election

← 2012 4 May 2017 (2017-05-04) 2022 →
All 70 seats to Aberdeenshire Council 36 seats needed for a majority
First party Second party Third party   Leader Jim Gifford Richard Thomson Peter Argyle Party Conservative SNP Liberal Democrats Leader's seat Mid Formartine Ellon and District Aboyne, Upper Deeside and Donside Last election 14 seats, 21.2% 28 seats, 38.9% 12 seats, 15.4% Seats won 23 21 14 Seat change 9 7 2 Popular vote 37,291 26,180 13,355 Percentage 40.1% 28.2% 14.4% Swing 18.9% 10.7% 1.0%   Fourth party Fifth party Sixth party   Leader Norman Smith Alison Evison Martin Ford Party Independent Labour Scottish Green Last election 11 seats, 14.7% 2 seats, 6.8% 1 seat, 2.4% Seats after 10 1 1 Seat change 1 1 0 Popular vote 10,168 4,094 1,781 Percentage 10.9% 4.4% 1.9% Swing 3.8% 2.4% 0.5%
2017 Aberdeenshire Council Election Results Map
Council Leader before election Hamish Vernal SNP Council Leader after election Jim Gifford Conservative

Elections to Aberdeenshire Council were held on 4 May 2017, on the same day as the other Scottish local government elections. The election used the 19 wards created as a result of the Local Governance (Scotland) Act 2004, with each ward electing three or four councillors using the single transferable vote system form of proportional representation, with 70 councillors being elected, an increase of two members compared to 2012.

The Conservatives returned the most councillors, the first time it has been the largest party in the region since 1982, when the area was under the Grampian Regional Council, although they fell short of an overall majority. The number of Scottish National Party (SNP) councillors fell by seven but remained the second largest group. The Liberal Democrats picked up two seats while the other parties achieved roughly the same results as the previous election in 2012.

After negotiations, on 18 May 2017, the Conservatives, Liberal Democrats and Aligned Independents formed an administration, with Conservative councillor Jim Gifford being elected as council leader and Liberal Democrat councillor Bill Howatson being elected Provost.^[1]