← Bolton (all cycles) · 6 May 2021 cohort

Bolton 2021

Local elections held 6 May 2021.

20 ward races
21 seats
11 elected below the proportional quota
52.4% of seats below quota
3 unfairly awarded seats
14.3% of seats unfairly awarded

Each race compares the marginal winner's share of valid ballots to the proportional quota — the share they'd need under any common proportional method. How the numbers are derived →

If votes were counted by party

Across the 20 wards in this cycle, parties received the vote totals below. The proportional column shows what each party would have won if the 21 seats had been shared out in proportion to votes received (how, with caveats). The Δ column is the actual seat count minus the proportional seat count — positive numbers are parties First-Past-the-Post over-represented; negative are parties it under-represented.

PartyVotesVote %Seats won% of seatsProportional seatsProportional %Δ
Conservative Party30,25538.8%1047.6%942.9%+1
Labour Party27,52035.3%733.3%838.1%-1
Liberal Democrats7,5629.7%14.8%29.5%-1
FKF4,2035.4%29.5%14.8%+1
Green Party3,1684.1%00.0%14.8%-1
H&B F IND2,3803.0%14.8%00.0%+1
BFC1,6982.2%00.0%00.0%0
UK Independence Party (UKIP)5850.7%00.0%00.0%0
WEST F IND3950.5%00.0%00.0%0
AFW1810.2%00.0%00.0%0
Independent790.1%00.0%00.0%0
FBM160.0%00.0%00.0%0
Total78,042100.0%21100.0%21100.0%0

Vote share vs seats won

The top bar is each party's share of votes cast in this council. Below, one square per seat, coloured by the party that won it — first the actual First-Past-the-Post result, then what a proportional method would have produced from the same vote totals. Divergence between the bar and the actual grid is the indictment of the method.

Vote share
Actual seats
Proportional seats

Council composition: what this election replaced

Two opencouncildata snapshots: the council immediately after the 2021 election (current) and immediately before it (2020). Only ~⅓ of seats were contested in 2021 — most of the bench is unchanged, and the cycle's effect on the overall composition is what shifts.

Current (2021)
Previous (2020)

Wards in this council

Sorted with the largest gap below the quota first. Click any ward to jump to its full result.

Race results

Horwich and Blackrod · single-seat

Marginal winner Winning candidate's share of valid ballots. 33.0% Proportional quota 50.0% Below quota Marginal winner's share minus the proportional quota for this race. Negative = below; positive = above. −17.0 pts Valid ballots (est.) Estimated voters: total votes ÷ 1 seats. Source data does not publish a ballot count for this cycle. 3,950

RankCandidatePartyVotesShare of votes Candidate votes ÷ total votes cast in this ward. Matches the share the council publishes.Below quota Each elected candidate's share of valid ballots minus the proportional quota for this race. Negative = won the seat below the quota; positive = cleared it.Elected
1Grant D.J.H&B F IND1,30333.0%−17.0 ptsElected
2Stanley F.D.Conservative Party1,28832.6%
3Pritchard-Jones J.Labour Party1,13028.6%
4Bovill A.P.D.Green Party1493.8%
5Walsh K.Liberal Democrats802.0%

Electorate 10,901 · EC ward code E05000660 · Back to ward index

Horwich North East · single-seat

Marginal winner Winning candidate's share of valid ballots. 35.1% Proportional quota 50.0% Below quota Marginal winner's share minus the proportional quota for this race. Negative = below; positive = above. −14.9 pts Valid ballots (est.) Estimated voters: total votes ÷ 1 seats. Source data does not publish a ballot count for this cycle. 4,018

RankCandidatePartyVotesShare of votes Candidate votes ÷ total votes cast in this ward. Matches the share the council publishes.Below quota Each elected candidate's share of valid ballots minus the proportional quota for this race. Negative = won the seat below the quota; positive = cleared it.Elected
1Silvester R.Labour Party1,41235.1%−14.9 ptsElected
2Bamforth R.H&B F IND1,07726.8%
3Stone G.Liberal Democrats79419.8%
4Wright H.Conservative Party61815.4%
5Cocker K.M.Green Party1172.9%

Electorate 10,012 · EC ward code E05000661 · Back to ward index

Westhoughton South · single-seat

Marginal winner Winning candidate's share of valid ballots. 36.0% Proportional quota 50.0% Below quota Marginal winner's share minus the proportional quota for this race. Negative = below; positive = above. −14.0 pts Valid ballots (est.) Estimated voters: total votes ÷ 1 seats. Source data does not publish a ballot count for this cycle. 3,503

RankCandidatePartyVotesShare of votes Candidate votes ÷ total votes cast in this ward. Matches the share the council publishes.Below quota Each elected candidate's share of valid ballots minus the proportional quota for this race. Negative = won the seat below the quota; positive = cleared it.Elected
1Hill C.Conservative Party1,26236.0%−14.0 ptsElected
2Maher N.Liberal Democrats95527.3%
3Jarvis M.Labour Party87124.9%
4Brennan R.M.WEST F IND1945.5%
5Rowley V.A.AFW1293.7%
6McManus E.Green Party922.6%

Electorate 10,005 · EC ward code E05000669 · Back to ward index

Little Lever and Darcy Lever · single-seat

Marginal winner Winning candidate's share of valid ballots. 42.6% Proportional quota 50.0% Below quota Marginal winner's share minus the proportional quota for this race. Negative = below; positive = above. −7.4 pts Valid ballots (est.) Estimated voters: total votes ÷ 1 seats. Source data does not publish a ballot count for this cycle. 3,605

RankCandidatePartyVotesShare of votes Candidate votes ÷ total votes cast in this ward. Matches the share the council publishes.Below quota Each elected candidate's share of valid ballots minus the proportional quota for this race. Negative = won the seat below the quota; positive = cleared it.Elected
1Taylor-Burke A.Conservative Party1,53642.6%−7.4 ptsElected
2Entwistle J.A.Labour Party1,09530.4%
3Gibbon R.UK Independence Party (UKIP)58516.2%
4Varnam B.BFC1795.0%
5Hewitt G.R.Green Party1484.1%
6Turner-Preece S.J.Liberal Democrats461.3%
7Collins S.FBM160.4%

Electorate 9,766 · EC ward code E05000664 · Back to ward index

Smithills · single-seat

Marginal winner Winning candidate's share of valid ballots. 44.2% Proportional quota 50.0% Below quota Marginal winner's share minus the proportional quota for this race. Negative = below; positive = above. −5.8 pts Valid ballots (est.) Estimated voters: total votes ÷ 1 seats. Source data does not publish a ballot count for this cycle. 3,908

RankCandidatePartyVotesShare of votes Candidate votes ÷ total votes cast in this ward. Matches the share the council publishes.Below quota Each elected candidate's share of valid ballots minus the proportional quota for this race. Negative = won the seat below the quota; positive = cleared it.Elected
1Hayes R.G.C.Liberal Democrats1,72844.2%−5.8 ptsElected
2Sesay S.Labour Party98625.2%
3Johnson J.Conservative Party88322.6%
4Bentham D.BFC1774.5%
5Ebbitt D.F.Green Party1343.4%

Electorate 10,508 · EC ward code E05000666 · Back to ward index

Hulton · single-seat

Marginal winner Winning candidate's share of valid ballots. 44.9% Proportional quota 50.0% Below quota Marginal winner's share minus the proportional quota for this race. Negative = below; positive = above. −5.1 pts Valid ballots (est.) Estimated voters: total votes ÷ 1 seats. Source data does not publish a ballot count for this cycle. 3,774

RankCandidatePartyVotesShare of votes Candidate votes ÷ total votes cast in this ward. Matches the share the council publishes.Below quota Each elected candidate's share of valid ballots minus the proportional quota for this race. Negative = won the seat below the quota; positive = cleared it.Elected
1Hewitt T.J.Conservative Party1,69544.9%−5.1 ptsElected
2Shaikh S.Labour Party1,07528.5%
3Hayes P.Green Party86022.8%
4Armstrong J.BFC772.0%
5Allen M.Liberal Democrats671.8%

Electorate 10,202 · EC ward code E05000662 · Back to ward index

Tonge with the Haulgh · single-seat

Marginal winner Winning candidate's share of valid ballots. 44.9% Proportional quota 50.0% Below quota Marginal winner's share minus the proportional quota for this race. Negative = below; positive = above. −5.1 pts Valid ballots (est.) Estimated voters: total votes ÷ 1 seats. Source data does not publish a ballot count for this cycle. 2,830

RankCandidatePartyVotesShare of votes Candidate votes ÷ total votes cast in this ward. Matches the share the council publishes.Below quota Each elected candidate's share of valid ballots minus the proportional quota for this race. Negative = won the seat below the quota; positive = cleared it.Elected
1Donaghy M.Labour Party1,27244.9%−5.1 ptsElected
2McArdle W.A.Conservative Party1,12039.6%
3Jones T.BFC35712.6%
4Forrest B.Liberal Democrats812.9%

Electorate 9,248 · EC ward code E05000667 · Back to ward index

Harper Green · single-seat

Marginal winner Winning candidate's share of valid ballots. 45.0% Proportional quota 50.0% Below quota Marginal winner's share minus the proportional quota for this race. Negative = below; positive = above. −5.0 pts Valid ballots (est.) Estimated voters: total votes ÷ 1 seats. Source data does not publish a ballot count for this cycle. 3,489

RankCandidatePartyVotesShare of votes Candidate votes ÷ total votes cast in this ward. Matches the share the council publishes.Below quota Each elected candidate's share of valid ballots minus the proportional quota for this race. Negative = won the seat below the quota; positive = cleared it.Elected
1Mistry C.G.Labour Party1,56945.0%−5.0 ptsElected
2Khan F.Conservative Party92226.4%
3Flitcroft P.J.FKF77722.3%
4Shepherd W.A.Green Party1283.7%
5Gannon P.BFC541.5%
6Hayes J.Liberal Democrats391.1%

Electorate 10,247 · EC ward code E05000658 · Back to ward index

Westhoughton North and Chew Moor · single-seat

Marginal winner Winning candidate's share of valid ballots. 46.6% Proportional quota 50.0% Below quota Marginal winner's share minus the proportional quota for this race. Negative = below; positive = above. −3.4 pts Valid ballots (est.) Estimated voters: total votes ÷ 1 seats. Source data does not publish a ballot count for this cycle. 4,156

RankCandidatePartyVotesShare of votes Candidate votes ÷ total votes cast in this ward. Matches the share the council publishes.Below quota Each elected candidate's share of valid ballots minus the proportional quota for this race. Negative = won the seat below the quota; positive = cleared it.Elected
1Finney A.Conservative Party1,93746.6%−3.4 ptsElected
2Price A.Liberal Democrats1,20729.0%
3Jiva Z.Labour Party65215.7%
4Speight J.WEST F IND2014.8%
5Stewart A.Green Party1072.6%
6Bates R.A.AFW521.3%

Electorate 11,034 · EC ward code E05000668 · Back to ward index

Breightmet · single-seat

Marginal winner Winning candidate's share of valid ballots. 49.2% Proportional quota 50.0% Below quota Marginal winner's share minus the proportional quota for this race. Negative = below; positive = above. −0.8 pts Valid ballots (est.) Estimated voters: total votes ÷ 1 seats. Source data does not publish a ballot count for this cycle. 3,206

RankCandidatePartyVotesShare of votes Candidate votes ÷ total votes cast in this ward. Matches the share the council publishes.Below quota Each elected candidate's share of valid ballots minus the proportional quota for this race. Negative = won the seat below the quota; positive = cleared it.Elected
1Hartigan S.M.Conservative Party1,57649.2%−0.8 ptsElected
2Gallagher B.Labour Party1,22238.1%
3Holt S.BFC2628.2%
4Hewitt C.Green Party862.7%
5Wilkes J.Liberal Democrats601.9%

Electorate 9,728 · EC ward code E05000652 · Back to ward index

Farnworth · single-seat

Marginal winner Winning candidate's share of valid ballots. 49.6% Proportional quota 50.0% Below quota Marginal winner's share minus the proportional quota for this race. Negative = below; positive = above. −0.4 pts Valid ballots (est.) Estimated voters: total votes ÷ 1 seats. Source data does not publish a ballot count for this cycle. 3,322

RankCandidatePartyVotesShare of votes Candidate votes ÷ total votes cast in this ward. Matches the share the council publishes.Below quota Each elected candidate's share of valid ballots minus the proportional quota for this race. Negative = won the seat below the quota; positive = cleared it.Elected
1Sanders P.D.FKF1,64749.6%−0.4 ptsElected
2Ayub N.Labour Party1,33540.2%
3Dean B.Conservative Party2798.4%
4Macpherson C.J.Liberal Democrats611.8%

Electorate 10,974 · EC ward code E05000655 · Back to ward index

Kearsley · single-seat

Marginal winner Winning candidate's share of valid ballots. 52.3% Proportional quota 50.0% Below quota Marginal winner's share minus the proportional quota for this race. Negative = below; positive = above. +2.3 pts Valid ballots (est.) Estimated voters: total votes ÷ 1 seats. Source data does not publish a ballot count for this cycle. 3,400

RankCandidatePartyVotesShare of votes Candidate votes ÷ total votes cast in this ward. Matches the share the council publishes.Below quota Each elected candidate's share of valid ballots minus the proportional quota for this race. Negative = won the seat below the quota; positive = cleared it.Elected
1Wilkinson T.L.E.FKF1,77952.3%+2.3 ptsElected
2Cunningham M.J.Conservative Party60017.6%
3Atcha A.A.Labour Party52815.5%
4Newall D.Liberal Democrats49314.5%

Electorate 10,614 · EC ward code E05000663 · Back to ward index

Crompton · single-seat

Marginal winner Winning candidate's share of valid ballots. 54.6% Proportional quota 50.0% Below quota Marginal winner's share minus the proportional quota for this race. Negative = below; positive = above. +4.6 pts Valid ballots (est.) Estimated voters: total votes ÷ 1 seats. Source data does not publish a ballot count for this cycle. 4,148

RankCandidatePartyVotesShare of votes Candidate votes ÷ total votes cast in this ward. Matches the share the council publishes.Below quota Each elected candidate's share of valid ballots minus the proportional quota for this race. Negative = won the seat below the quota; positive = cleared it.Elected
1Jiva R.Labour Party2,26654.6%+4.6 ptsElected
2Patel S.Conservative Party1,31931.8%
3Fenton T.BFC2816.8%
4Godfrey F.Liberal Democrats1583.8%
5Rylance H.Green Party1243.0%

Electorate 11,491 · EC ward code E05000654 · Back to ward index

Heaton and Lostock · single-seat

Marginal winner Winning candidate's share of valid ballots. 57.0% Proportional quota 50.0% Below quota Marginal winner's share minus the proportional quota for this race. Negative = below; positive = above. +7.0 pts Valid ballots (est.) Estimated voters: total votes ÷ 1 seats. Source data does not publish a ballot count for this cycle. 4,911

RankCandidatePartyVotesShare of votes Candidate votes ÷ total votes cast in this ward. Matches the share the council publishes.Below quota Each elected candidate's share of valid ballots minus the proportional quota for this race. Negative = won the seat below the quota; positive = cleared it.Elected
1Morgan A.Conservative Party2,79957.0%+7.0 ptsElected
2Gillatt J.W.Labour Party1,41928.9%
3Priest S.Liberal Democrats4889.9%
4Jones K.Green Party2054.2%

Electorate 10,769 · EC ward code E05000659 · Back to ward index

Great Lever · single-seat

Marginal winner Winning candidate's share of valid ballots. 58.0% Proportional quota 50.0% Below quota Marginal winner's share minus the proportional quota for this race. Negative = below; positive = above. +8.0 pts Valid ballots (est.) Estimated voters: total votes ÷ 1 seats. Source data does not publish a ballot count for this cycle. 3,680

RankCandidatePartyVotesShare of votes Candidate votes ÷ total votes cast in this ward. Matches the share the council publishes.Below quota Each elected candidate's share of valid ballots minus the proportional quota for this race. Negative = won the seat below the quota; positive = cleared it.Elected
1Iqbal M.Labour Party2,13358.0%+8.0 ptsElected
2Nazar M.M.Conservative Party1,19032.3%
3Figgins D.Green Party2236.1%
4Macpherson D.A.Liberal Democrats1343.6%

Electorate 10,408 · EC ward code E05000656 · Back to ward index

Bromley Cross · single-seat

Marginal winner Winning candidate's share of valid ballots. 61.7% Proportional quota 50.0% Below quota Marginal winner's share minus the proportional quota for this race. Negative = below; positive = above. +11.7 pts Valid ballots (est.) Estimated voters: total votes ÷ 1 seats. Source data does not publish a ballot count for this cycle. 4,455

RankCandidatePartyVotesShare of votes Candidate votes ÷ total votes cast in this ward. Matches the share the council publishes.Below quota Each elected candidate's share of valid ballots minus the proportional quota for this race. Negative = won the seat below the quota; positive = cleared it.Elected
1Muslim N.Conservative Party2,74861.7%+11.7 ptsElected
2Mort E.G.A.Labour Party1,26128.3%
3Spencer E.Green Party2826.3%
4Turner E.Liberal Democrats1643.7%

Electorate 10,458 · EC ward code E05000653 · Back to ward index

Rumworth · single-seat

Marginal winner Winning candidate's share of valid ballots. 63.6% Proportional quota 50.0% Below quota Marginal winner's share minus the proportional quota for this race. Negative = below; positive = above. +13.6 pts Valid ballots (est.) Estimated voters: total votes ÷ 1 seats. Source data does not publish a ballot count for this cycle. 3,803

RankCandidatePartyVotesShare of votes Candidate votes ÷ total votes cast in this ward. Matches the share the council publishes.Below quota Each elected candidate's share of valid ballots minus the proportional quota for this race. Negative = won the seat below the quota; positive = cleared it.Elected
1Abdullah S.Labour Party2,41763.6%+13.6 ptsElected
2Patel S.Conservative Party1,10028.9%
3Johnson A.Green Party1965.2%
4Cooper D.C.T.Liberal Democrats902.4%

Electorate 10,240 · EC ward code E05000665 · Back to ward index

Astley Bridge · 2-seat (bloc vote)

Marginal winner Voter-share estimate of the lowest-vote elected candidate. Comparable to the proportional quota. The raw vote share would be ~2× smaller. 47.7% Proportional quota 33.3% Below quota Marginal winner's share minus the proportional quota for this race. Negative = below; positive = above. +14.4 pts Valid ballots (est.) Estimated voters: total votes ÷ 2 seats. Source data does not publish a ballot count for this cycle. 3,657

This is a 2-seat ward under bloc vote — each voter could cast up to 2 votes, so summing candidate votes overcounts voters by ~2×. We show share of votes (matches the council's published figure) and share of voters (est.) (raw share × 2, the figure comparable to the proportional quota). Why two columns →

RankCandidatePartyVotesShare of votes Candidate votes ÷ total votes cast in this ward. Matches the share the council publishes.Share of voters (est.) Estimated share of voters who supported this candidate, comparable across single- and multi-seat wards. Each voter could cast up to 2 votes, so we approximate ballots as total votes ÷ 2. This is the figure compared against the proportional quota.Below quota Each elected candidate's share of valid ballots minus the proportional quota for this race. Negative = won the seat below the quota; positive = cleared it.Elected
1Fairclough H.C.Conservative Party2,56935.1%70.2%+36.9 ptsElected
2Rimmer S.J.Conservative Party1,74623.9%47.7%+14.4 ptsElected
3Patel S.Labour Party1,02514.0%28.0%
4Sutton S.Labour Party89712.3%24.5%
5Mulligan K.Liberal Democrats3865.3%10.6%
6Haslam J.P.Liberal Democrats3805.2%10.4%
7Eccleshare P.BFC3114.3%8.5%

Electorate 10,476 · EC ward code E05000650 · Back to ward index

Bradshaw · single-seat

Marginal winner Winning candidate's share of valid ballots. 68.8% Proportional quota 50.0% Below quota Marginal winner's share minus the proportional quota for this race. Negative = below; positive = above. +18.8 pts Valid ballots (est.) Estimated voters: total votes ÷ 1 seats. Source data does not publish a ballot count for this cycle. 3,691

RankCandidatePartyVotesShare of votes Candidate votes ÷ total votes cast in this ward. Matches the share the council publishes.Below quota Each elected candidate's share of valid ballots minus the proportional quota for this race. Negative = won the seat below the quota; positive = cleared it.Elected
1Radcliffe J.Conservative Party2,53968.8%+18.8 ptsElected
2Pratheepan L.Labour Party84222.8%
3Howes S.Green Party2145.8%
4Turner-Preece C.Liberal Democrats962.6%

Electorate 8,994 · EC ward code E05000651 · Back to ward index

Halliwell · single-seat

Marginal winner Winning candidate's share of valid ballots. 73.4% Proportional quota 50.0% Below quota Marginal winner's share minus the proportional quota for this race. Negative = below; positive = above. +23.4 pts Valid ballots (est.) Estimated voters: total votes ÷ 1 seats. Source data does not publish a ballot count for this cycle. 2,879

RankCandidatePartyVotesShare of votes Candidate votes ÷ total votes cast in this ward. Matches the share the council publishes.Below quota Each elected candidate's share of valid ballots minus the proportional quota for this race. Negative = won the seat below the quota; positive = cleared it.Elected
1Lewis K.Labour Party2,11373.4%+23.4 ptsElected
2Dean M.N.Conservative Party52918.4%
3Taylor C.P.Green Party1033.6%
4Massey A.Independent792.7%
5Newall C.Liberal Democrats551.9%

Electorate 9,313 · EC ward code E05000657 · Back to ward index