Lewisham London Borough Council elections

Lewisham London Borough Council is the local authority for the London Borough of Lewisham, in London, United Kingdom. Elections are held every four years using a plurality bloc vote electoral system for the councillors and the supplementary vote electoral system for the elected mayor.

A map showing the wards of Lewisham since 2002

Political control

The first election to the council was held in 1964, initially operating as a shadow authority before the new system came into effect the following year. Political control of the council since 1964 has been held by the following parties:

Party in control		Years
	Labour	1964–1968
	Conservative	1968–1971
	Labour	1971–2006
	No overall control	2006–2010
	Labour	2010–present

Leadership

Prior to 2002, political leadership was provided by the leader of the council. The leaders from 1965 to 2002 were:^[1][2]

Councillor	Party		From	To
Fred Winslade		Labour	1965	1968
Norman Banks		Conservative	1968	1971
Andy Hawkins		Labour	1971	1984
Ron Stockbridge		Labour	1984	1985
Dave Sullivan		Labour	1985	1988
Steve Bullock		Labour	1988	1993
Margaret Moran		Labour	1993	1995
Jim Mallory		Labour	1995	1998
Dave Sullivan		Labour	1998	2002

In 2002 the council changed to having directly-elected mayors. The mayors since 2002 have been:

Councillor	Party		From	To
Steve Bullock		Labour	6 May 2002	6 May 2018
Damien Egan		Labour	7 May 2018

Council elections

• 1964 Lewisham London Borough Council election
• 1968 Lewisham London Borough Council election
• 1971 Lewisham London Borough Council election
• 1974 Lewisham London Borough Council election
• 1978 Lewisham London Borough Council election (boundary changes increased the number of seats by seven)^[3]
• 1982 Lewisham London Borough Council election
• 1986 Lewisham London Borough Council election
• 1990 Lewisham London Borough Council election
• 1994 Lewisham London Borough Council election (boundary changes took place but the number of seats remained the same)^{[n 1][n 2][n 3][n 4]}
• 1998 Lewisham London Borough Council election
• 2002 Lewisham London Borough Council election (boundary changes reduced the number of seats by thirteen)^[4]
• 2006 Lewisham London Borough Council election
• 2010 Lewisham London Borough Council election
• 2014 Lewisham London Borough Council election
• 2018 Lewisham London Borough Council election
• 2022 Lewisham London Borough Council election

Borough result maps

•  

  2002 results map

•  

  2006 results map

•  

  2010 results map

•  

  2014 results map

•  

  2018 results map

By-election results

1964–1968

There were no by-elections.^[5]

1968–1971

There were no by-elections.^[6]

1971–1974

Manor Lee by-election, 26 July 1973^[7]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	G. C. Hughes	978
	Conservative	Mrs P. L. Silk	786
	Liberal	Mrs C. J. Leek	374
	Communist	V. Griffin	72
	Independent Anti-Redevelopment	N. S. Fierz	19
Turnout				36.1%

Sydenham West by-election, 25 October 1973^[7]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	D. M. Dear	1,352
	Labour	B. A. Robertson	1,217
	Liberal	I. Witherick	385
	National Front	Miss J. F. Sandland	282
	Communist	J. Early	93
Turnout				31.4%

1974–1978

St Mildred Lee by-election, 22 January 1976^[3]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Pamela L. Silk	1,634
	Labour	Peter L. Whipps	522
	Liberal	Derek G. Good	168
Turnout				37.4

Deptford by-election, 1 July 1976^[3]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Peter R. Adams	968
	National Party	Malcolm L. Dixon	580
	National Front	Richard C. Edmonds	395
	Conservative	Gillian B. Elvin	256
Turnout				26.7

Sydenham West by-election, 4 November 1976^[3]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Russell F. George	1,863
	Labour	Benjamin Marshall	1,104
	National Front	Leigh J. Taylor	291
	National Party	Sydney G. Avis	215
	Liberal	Gwilym J. Savell	188
Turnout				32.5

1978–1982

1982–1986

1986–1990

1990–1994

Pepys by-election, 17 October 1991^[8]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	John C. Rudd	1,181	60.3
	Liberal Democrats	Johanna C. Brightwell	394	20.1
	Conservative	Douglas Stewart-Whyte	383	19.6
Turnout				26.1
	Labour hold		Swing

The by-election was called following the resignation of Cllr. Helen A. H. Dawson.

Downham by-election, 19 March 1992^[8]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Lib Dem Focus Team	Marc Morgan-Huws	1,555	45.7
	Labour	Norman Smith	1,225	36.0
	Conservative	Eleanor M. Picton	622	18.3
Turnout				46.6
	Lib Dem Focus Team hold		Swing

The by-election was called following the resignation of Cllr. Thomas L. Fowler.

Catford by-election, 16 July 1992^[8]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Richard Greenwood	1,112	60.0
	Labour	Alan K. Porter	508	27.4
	Liberal Democrats	Owen T. Griffiths	207	11.2
	National Front	Paul C. Penfold	27	1.5
Turnout				31.6
	Conservative hold		Swing

The by-election was called following the resignation of Cllr. Theodore J. B. Yard.

St Margaret by-election, 20 August 1992^[8]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Sally P. Lovett	1,109	52.0
	Conservative	Janice E. Poulton	909	42.6
	Liberal Democrats	Ben L. Brooks	94	4.4
	National Front	Paul C. Penfold	21	1.0
Turnout				40.1
	Labour hold		Swing

The by-election was called following the death of Cllr. Eric Richards.

Perry Hill by-election, 15 October 1992^[8]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Alan R. Till	1,419	56.5
	Conservative	Angela Bradshaw	917	36.5
	Liberal Democrats	Mark A. Bennett	143	5.7
	National Front	Gerrard Dickson	34	1.4
Turnout				30.8
	Labour hold		Swing

The by-election was called following the death of Cllr. Timothy Walsh.

Ladywell by-election, 26 November 1992^[8]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Miriam A. Eze	773	72.2
	Conservative	William Warren	297	27.8
Turnout				14.7
	Labour hold		Swing

The by-election was called following the resignation of Cllr. Cathy Doyle.

1994–1998

Downham by-election, 18 May 1995^[9]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Roy T. Stevens	1,215
	Liberal Democrats	Mai Davies	1,037
	Conservative	Barry J. Olley	306
	Independent Liberal	Henry Middleton	86
	Green	Ronald P. Wilson	15
Turnout
	Labour gain from Liberal Democrats		Swing

The by-election was called following the resignation of Cllr. Marc O. Morgan-Huws.

Grove Park by-election, 20 July 1995^[9]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Aaron D. Green	875
	Conservative	Barrie P. Anderson	619
	Green	Hayley Trueman	66
	Liberal Democrats	Adebayo Adetona	53
	Independent	Toby R. Alcock	19
Turnout
	Labour hold		Swing

The by-election was called following the resignation of Cllr. John Macdonald.

Pepys by-election, 25 April 1996^[9]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Alan D. Hall	1,044
	Militant Labour	Michael P. Suter	223
	Green	Jonathan W. Daniels	173
	Conservative	David M. Richards	157
	Liberal Democrats	Peter Wells	57
Turnout
	Labour hold		Swing

The by-election was called following the death of Cllr. John C. Rudd.

Blackheath by-election, 1 May 1997^[9]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Andrew K. Brown	1,852
	Conservative	Dorothy J. Stollery	1,000
	Liberal Democrats	Tim Prater	503
	Green	Dean M. Walton	121
Turnout
	Labour hold		Swing

The by-election was called following the resignation of Cllr. Heidi A. Nash.

Churchdown by-election, 1 May 1997^[9]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	David D. Bodimeade	2,533
	Conservative	Gilly Greensitt	1,315
	Liberal Democrats	Linda F. Hawkins	599
	Green	Hayley Trueman	105
Turnout
	Labour hold		Swing

The by-election was called following the resignation of Cllr. Clive R. Jordan.

Churchdown by-election, 24 July 1997^[9]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Kathleen A. McGarrigle	799
	Liberal Democrats	Tim Prater	558
	Conservative	Andrew J. Lee	411
	Socialist Labour	James T. Dunn	104
	Green	Hayley Trueman	20
Turnout
	Labour hold		Swing

The by-election was called following the resignation of Cllr. Margaret Moran.

1998–2002

Grinling Gibbons by-election, 26 November 1998^[4]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Vanessa Large	374
	Green	Sharon L. Mattey	108
	Independent Socialist	Ian G. Page	102
	Conservative	Ulric Almqvist	101
	Liberal Democrats	Neil R. Stockley	69
Turnout
	Labour hold		Swing

The by-election was called following the resignation of Cllr. David Brown.

Downham by-election, 8 April 1999^[4]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal Democrats	Catherine E. Priddey	1,281
	Labour	Paul Upex	572
	Conservative	Charles R. Cramp	186
	Independent Labour	Paul Nichols	54
Turnout
	Liberal Democrats hold		Swing

The by-election was called following the resignation of Cllr. Roy T. Stevens.

Pepys by-election, 10 June 1999^[4]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Socialist Alternative	Ian G. Page	786
	Labour	Paul Upex	663
	Green	Dean M. Walton	182
	Conservative	Gianfranco J. Letizia	170
	Liberal Democrats	Adebayo Adetona	143
Turnout
	Socialist Alternative gain from Labour		Swing

The by-election was called following the resignation of Cllr. Alan D. Hall.

Churchdown by-election, 15 July 1999^[4]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Alicia Chater	793
	Liberal Democrats	David C. Buxton	609
	Conservative	Neil C. Weatherall	431
	Independent Socialist	Jill Mountford	66
Turnout
	Labour hold		Swing

The by-election was called following the resignation of Cllr. Kelly A. M. Conway.

Pepys by-election, 23 November 2000^[4]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Socialist Alternative	Samantha Dias	567
	Labour	Samuel B. Owolabi	533
	Conservative	Michael G. Vearncombe	138
	Green	Dean M. Walton	128
	Liberal Democrats	Keith H. Adderley	74
Turnout
	Socialist Alternative gain from Labour		Swing

The by-election was called following the resignation of Cllr. Sandra Margaret.

Marlowe by-election, 8 February 2001^[4]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Sabina Padmore	600
	Socialist Alliance	Robert Gardiner	174
	Conservative	Gail Spencer	110
	Liberal Democrats	Alex Folkes	98
Turnout
	Labour hold		Swing

The by-election was called following the resignation of Cllr. Annette L. Gordon.

Bellingham by-election, 8 November 2001^[4]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Steve Bullock	584
	Conservative	Derek A. Stone	203
	Liberal Democrats	Alexander D. Freakes	67
Turnout
	Labour hold		Swing

The by-election was called following the resignation of Cllr. John A. O’Shea.

2002–2006

Lee Green by-election, 10 October 2002^[10]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal Democrats	Rachael J. Collins	842
	Labour	Paul G. Morris	798
	Conservative	Joanna E. Britton	568
	Green	Anna Baker	167
	BNP	Barry J. Roberts	82
	CPA	Marcus D. Iles	58
	UKIP	Ralph S. Atkinson	25
Turnout
	Liberal Democrats gain from Labour		Swing

The by-election was called following the resignation of Cllr. David Sullivan.

Downham by-election, 7 November 2002^[10]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal Democrats	Mark C. Morris	998
	Labour	Andrew J. Tucker	769
	BNP	Mary T. Culnane	519
	Conservative	Raymond D. Woolford	259
	Socialist Alliance	Jean Kysow	41
Turnout
	Liberal Democrats gain from Labour		Swing

The by-election was called following the resignation of Cllr. Paul J. Fallon.

Lewisham Central by-election, 23 October 2003^[10]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal Democrats	Andrew L. Milton	1,054
	Labour	Christopher J. Watt	869
	Conservative	James Cleverly	654
	Green	Susan Luxton	154
	UKIP	Ralph Atkinson	44
	CPA	Sonia L. Chambers	41
Turnout
	Liberal Democrats gain from Labour		Swing

The by-election was called following the resignation of Cllr. Parmavir Singha.

Telegraph Hill by-election, 4 December 2003^[10]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Socialist Alternative	Christopher Flood	590
	Labour	Ami F. Ibitson	490
	Local Education Action by Parents	Marie-Louise Irvine	355
	Liberal Democrats	Sarah J. Williams	155
	Conservative	David C. Furze	121
	Green	Dean Walton	88
	UKIP	Ralph Atkinson	9
Turnout
	Socialist Alternative gain from Labour		Swing

The by-election was called following the resignation of Cllr. John P. Houghton.

Evelyn by-election, 10 June 2004^[10]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Heidi Alexander	1,432
	Conservative	Rebecca B. Stevens	463
	Socialist Alternative	Jessica M. Leech	374
	Liberal Democrats	David Edgerton	367
	Green	Robin Altwarg	199
Turnout
	Labour hold		Swing

The by-election was called following the resignation of Cllr. Alicia Chater.

Lee Green by-election, 10 June 2004^[10]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Simeon Baker	1,213
	Liberal Democrats	John F. Russell	1,156
	Conservative	Brian Chipps	903
	Independent	Gerard J. Ambrose	665
	Green	Anna L. Baker	394
Turnout
	Labour gain from Liberal Democrats		Swing

The by-election was called following the resignation of Cllr. Rachael J. Collins.

Forest Hill by-election, 17 March 2005^[10]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal Democrats	Arthur P. Peake	1,011
	Labour	Erica Ballmann	789
	Conservative	Raymond Squires	522
Turnout
	Liberal Democrats gain from Labour		Swing

The by-election was called following the death of Cllr. Joseph P. Dawson.

Lee Green by-election, 17 March 2005^[10]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal Democrats	Paul R. Bentley	939
	Conservative	Brian Chipps	642
	Labour	Ashtaq Arain	448
	Independent	Gerard J. Ambrose	355
	Green	Andrea Hughes	113
	UKIP	Ralph S. Atkinson	40
Turnout
	Liberal Democrats gain from Labour		Swing

The by-election was called following the resignation of Cllr. Neil Semple.

2006–2010

Whitefoot by-election, 13 September 2007^[11]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal Democrats	Pete Pattisson	986
	Labour	Skip Amrani	901
	Conservative	Thomas R. Philpott	536
	BNP	Ms. Tess Culnane	95
	UKIP	Jens G. Winton	89
	Green	Charles P. Laurie	52
Turnout
	Liberal Democrats hold		Swing

The by-election was called following the disqualification of Cllr. Sera Kentman.

Downham by-election, 19 February 2009^[11]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal Democrats	Ms. Jenni Clutten	1,075
	Liberal Democrats	Duwayne Brooks	1,067
	Labour	Damien J. Egan	655
	Conservative	Ms. Christine J. Allison	654
	Labour	Ms. Pauline S. Morrison	635
	Conservative	Andrew J. Lee	632
	BNP	Tess Culnane	287
	Green	Cath Miller	63
	Green	Lee Roach	62
Turnout
	Liberal Democrats hold		Swing
	Liberal Democrats hold		Swing

The by-election was called following the resignations of Cllrs. Simon C. Carter and Mark C. Morris.

2010–2014

Ladywell by-election, 4 November 2010^[12]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Carl Handley	1,231
	Green	Ute Michel	1,041
	Liberal Democrats	Ms. Ingrid Chetram	314
	People Before Profit	Ms. Helen Mercer	233
	Conservative	Ben Appleby	153
Turnout				29.9%
	Labour hold		Swing

The by-election was called following the resignation of Cllr. Tim Shand.

Bellingham by-election, 24 March 2011^[12]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Jacq Paschoud	1,100
	Conservative	Simon John Nundy	340
	Liberal Democrats	Ms. Jenni Steele	334
	People Before Profit	Ian Page	264
	Green	Phil Laurie	100
Turnout				22%
	Labour hold		Swing

The by-election was called following the death of Cllr. Ronald Stockbridge.

Whitefoot by-election, 11 October 2012^[12]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Mark Ingleby	924
	Liberal Democrats	Janet Hurst	646
	Conservative	Simon Nundy	258
	People Before Profit	John Hamilton	241
	UKIP	David Kurten	182
	Green	Ute Michel	36
Turnout				22.2%
	Labour gain from Liberal Democrats		Swing

The by-election was called following the resignation of Cllr. Pete Pattisson.

Evelyn by-election, 28 March 2013^[12]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Olufunke Abidoye	978
	People Before Profit	Barbara Raymond	404
	Liberal Democrats	Bill Town	131
	Conservative	Simon Nundy	119
	UKIP	Paul Oakley	119
Turnout				16.2%
	Labour hold		Swing

The by-election was called following the resignation of Cllr. Joseph K. Folorunso.

2014–2018

Bellingham by-election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Sue Hordijenko	940	56.8	+2.8
	Conservative	Ross Archer	302	18.2	+5.4
	Liberal Democrats	Ed Veasey	180	10.9	-5.1
	People Before Profit	David Hamilton	129	7.8	-5.6
	UKIP	Edwin Smith	104	6.3	N/A
Turnout			1,657	16.3%
	Labour hold		Swing

The by-election was called following the resignation of Councillor Ami Ibitson.

• Brockley by-election (October 2016) – Labour hold
• Evelyn by-election (October 2016) – Labour hold

2018–2019

Evelyn by-election 2019

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Lionel Openshaw	1,681
	Green	James Braun	702
	Conservative	Eleanor Reader-Moore	231
	Liberal Democrats	Bunmi Wajero	200
	People Before Profit	Joyce Leicester Jacca	151
	UKIP	Richard Day	140
	Women's Equality	Nicke Adebowale	71
	Democrats and Veterans	Matt Jenkins	13
	Labour hold		Swing

The by-election was called following the resignation of Councillor Alex Feis-Bryce.

Whitefoot by-election 2019

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Kim Amanda Powell	1,314
	Liberal Democrats	Max Brockbank	514
	Conservative	Ben Michael Brereton Blackmore	313
	People Before Profit	Gwenton Dennis Sloley	218
	CPA	Katherine Hortense	52
	Women's Equality	Cairis Grant-Hickey	41
	Democrats and Veterans	Massimo James Dimambro	28
	Labour hold		Swing

The by-election was called following the resignation of Councillor Janet Daby.

2021 by-elections

Four wards held by-elections alongside the 2021 local elections.

Bellingham by-election 2021^[13]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour Co-op	Rachel Onikosi	2,118	56.0
	Conservative	Dickon Prior	738	19.5
	Green	Nick Humerstone	336	8.9
	People Before Profit	John Nicholas Hamilton	303	8.0
	Liberal Democrats	Alex Feakes	210	5.5
	CPA	Katherine Susan Hortense	80	2.1
	Labour hold		Swing

Catford South by-election 2021^[14]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour Co-op	James William Royston	2,473	50.7
	Liberal Democrats	Diana Averil Cashin	891	18.3
	Conservative	Favour Obi	761	15.6
	Green	Matt Barker	590	12.0
	CPA	Maureen Maud Martin	114	2.3
	Young People's	Richard Paul Galloway	52	1.0
	Labour hold		Swing

New Cross by-election 2021^[15]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Samantha Latouche	3,038	61.1
	Green	Andrea Elizabeth Carey Fuller	862	17.3
	Conservative	Chris Wilford	526	10.6
	People Before Profit	Gwenton Dennis Sloley	219	4.4
	Liberal Democrats	Bunmi Wajero	214	4.3
	TUSC	Andy Beadle	111	2.2
	Labour hold		Swing

Sydenham by-election 2021^[16]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour Co-op	Jack Lavery	2,634	51.3
	Conservative	Diana Averil Cashin	982	19.1
	Green	Nick Lee	820	16.0
	Liberal Democrats	Margot Wilson	513	10.0
	People Before Profit	Michael Anthony Wayne	188	3.7
	Labour hold		Swing

Election results 2002–2018

In 2002 the council was reduced to its smallest size ever: 18 wards of 3 councillors each, plus an Elected Mayor, an innovation introduced by the Government two years earlier in the Local Government Act 2000. Incumbent Dave Sullivan who was combining the roles of Civic Mayor and Leader of the Council, in preparation for the introduction of the new system lost an acrimonious Labour Party internal primary to Steve Bullock, who went on to win the position. However, local policy difficulties as well as the problems the Labour Party was experiencing nationally meant that the 2006 election turned out to be only the second time that Labour didn't win a majority of councillors. In 2014, with an unpopular coalition government in national office, Labour regained almost all seats on the council, with the only opposition being a single Green. In 2018 Labour won every seat for the first time.

	2002^[17]	2006^[18]	2010^[18]	2014^[19]	2018^[20]
Bellingham	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3
Blackheath	Lab 3	Lib Dem 3	Lib Dem 2 / Lab 1	Lab 3	Lab 3
Brockley	Lab 2 / Green 1	Green 3	Lab 2 / Green 1	Lab 2 / Green 1	Lab 3
Catford South	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3
Crofton Park	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 2 / Lib Dem 1	Lab 3	Lab 3
Downham	Lib Dem 2 / Lab 1	Lib Dem 3	Lib Dem 3	Lab 3	Lab 3
Evelyn	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3
Forest Hill	Lab 3	Lib Dem 3	Lib Dem 2 / Lab 1	Lab 3	Lab 3
Grove Park	Con 2 / Lab 1	Con 3	Con 2 / Lab 1	Lab 3	Lab 3
Ladywell	Lab 3	Green 3	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3
Lee Green	Lab 3	Lib Dem 3	Lib Dem 2 / Lab 1	Lab 3	Lab 3
Lewisham Central	Lab 3	Lib Dem 2 / Lab 1	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3
New Cross	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3
Perry Vale	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3
Rushey Green	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3
Sydenham	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3
Telegraph Hill	Lab 1 / LEAP 1 / Soc 1	Soc 2 / Lab 1	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3
Whitefoot	Lib Dem 2 / Lab 1	Lib Dem 3	Lib Dem 2 / Lab 1	Lab 3	Lab 3

2018 Council:
Labour 54*

2014 Council:
Labour 53*; Green 1

 

Map showing the borders of the 18 wards of the London Borough of Lewisham, coloured to show the results of the 2006 local election results

2010 Council:
Labour 40*; Liberal Democrats 12; Green 1; Conservative 2^[18]

2006 Council:
Labour 27*; Liberal Democrats 17; Green 6; Conservative 3; Socialist 2^[18]

2002 Council:
Labour 46*; Liberal Democrats 4; Conservative 2; Socialist 1; Green 1; Local Education Action for Parents (LEAP) 1

*including Elected Mayor

By-elections in the 2002 council

(winning party shown)

17 March 2005 – Forest Hill (Lib Dem)
17 March 2005 – Lee Green (Lib Dem)
10 June 2004 – Evelyn (Labour)
10 June 2004 – Lee Green (Labour)
4 December 2003 – Telegraph Hill (Socialist)
23 October 2003 – Lewisham Central (Lib Dem) [All postal ballot]
7 November 2002 – Downham (Lib Dem)
10 October 2002 – Lee Green (Lib Dem)

By-elections in the 2006 council

(winning party shown)

13 September 2007 – Whitefoot (Lib Dem)
19 February 2009 – 2x Downham (2x Lib Dem)

Election results 1978–1998

In 1978 the council was increased to 67 seats as the ward boundaries were reviewed and changed. Also, the Government changed the law to extend Council terms everywhere from three to four years, so the 1974 council was given an extra year of life.

	1978	1982	1986	1990	1994	1998
Bellingham	Lab 2	Lab 2	Lab 2	Lab 2	Lab 2	Lab 2
Blackheath	Lab 2	Con 2	Lab 2	Lab 2	Lab 2	Lab 2
Blythe Hill	Con 2	Con 2	Lab 2	Lab 2	Lab 2	Lab 2
Catford	Con 2	Con 2	Con 2	Con 2	Lab 2	Lab 2
Churchdown	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3
Crofton Park	Con 3	Con 3	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3
Downham	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lib Dem 3	Lib Dem 3	Lib Dem 3
Drake	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3
Evelyn	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3
Forest Hill	Lab 2	Lab 2	Lab 2	Lab 2	Lab 2	Lab 2
Grinling Gibbons	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3
Grove Park	1 Lab / 1 Con	Lab 2	1 Lab / 1 Con	Lab 2	Lab 2	Lab 2
Hither Green	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3
Horniman	Con 3	Con 3	Con 3	Lab 2 / Con 1	Lab 3	Lab 3
Ladywell	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3
Manor Lee	Lab 2	Lab 2	Lab 2	Lab 2	Lab 2	Lab 2
Marlowe	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3
Pepys	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3
Perry Hill	Con 3	Lab 3	Con 3	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3
Rushey Green	Lab 2	Lab 2	Lab 2	Lab 2	Lab 2	Lab 2
St Andrews	Con 2	Con 2	Con 2	Lab 2	Lab 2	Lab 2
St Margaret	1 Lab / 1 Con	Con 2	1 Lab / 1 Con	Lab 2	Lab 2	Lab 2
St Mildred	Con 3	Con 3	Con 3	Con 3	2 Lab / 1 Con	2 Con / 1 Lab
Sydenham East	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3
Sydenham West	Con 3	Con 3	2 Lab / 1 Con	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3
Whitefoot	Lab 2	Con 2	1 Lab / 1 Con	Lab 2	Lab 2	1 Lab / 1 Lib Dem

 

Wards used in the London Borough of Lewisham from 1978 to 1998

1998 Council:
Labour 61; Lib Dem 4; Conservative 2^[21]

1994 Council:
Labour 63; Lib Dem 3; Conservative 1^[22]

1990 Council:
Labour 58; Conservative 6; Lib Dem 3

1986 Council:
Labour 50; Conservative 17

1982 Council:
Labour 43; Conservative 24

1978 Council:
Labour 44; Conservative 23

By-elections in the 1998 council

(winning party shown)
8 November 2001 – Bellingham (Labour)
8 February 2001 – Marlowe (Labour)
23 November 2000 – Pepys (Socialist)
15 July 1999 – Churchdown (Labour)
10 June 1999 – Pepys (Socialist)
8 April 1999 – Downham (Lib Dem)
25 November 1998 – Grinling Gibbons (Labour)

Election results 1964–1974

Between 1964 and 1974 the council was elected on wards created before the borough was created: 18 councillors in 6 wards from the Metropolitan Borough of Deptford and 42 councillors in 17 wards from the Metropolitan Borough of Lewisham. The election of the first council in 1964 constituted the practical creation of the London Borough of Lewisham. It operated in 'shadow' form and did not take over administration of services until a year later. Whilst the term of a council at that time was three years, the Government extended the life of all the London Boroughs in order to de-synchronize the timetabling of elections with those of the Greater London Council.

However, the 1968 council elections were a disaster for the Labour Party who were in national government at the time, and this was reflected in this borough – the three-year period 1968–1971 remains the only time in the borough's existence that Labour has not formed the administration. Non-Labour governance didn't take – the 1971 election saw the Conservative Party unable to defend its gains, as – now in national government itself – it was crushed in turn.

	1964	1968	1971	1974
Area of the former Metropolitan Borough of Deptford
Brockley	Lab 3	Con 3	Lab 3	Lab 3
Deptford	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3
Drake	Lab 3	Con 3	Lab 3	Lab 3
Grinling Gibbons	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3
Marlowe	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3
Pepys	Lab 3	Con 3	Lab 3	Lab 3
Area of the former Metropolitan Borough of Lewisham
Bellingham	Lab 2	Lab 2	Lab 2	Lab 2
Blackheath and Lewisham Village	Con 3	Con 3	Lab 3	Lab 3
Culverley	Con 2	Con 2	Con 2	Con 2
Forest Hill	Lab 2 / Con 1	Con 3	Lab 3	Con 3
Honor Oak Park	Con 3	Con 3	Lab 3	Con 3
Grove Park	Lab 2	Lab 2	Lab 2	Lab 2
Ladywell	Lab 3	Con 3	Lab 3	Lab 3
Lewisham Park	Lab 3	Con 3	Lab 3	Lab 3
Manor Lee	Lab 2	Con 2	Lab 2	Lab 2
Rushey Green	Lab 2	Con 2	Lab 2	Lab 2
St Andrew	Lab 2	Con 2	Lab 2	Lab 2
St Mildred Lee	Con 2	Con 2	Con 2	Con 2
Southend	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3	Lab 3
South Lee	Lab 2	Con 2	Lab 2	Lab 2
Sydenham East	Lab 2 / Con 1	Con 3	Lab 3	Lab 3
Sydenham West	Con 3	Con 3	Lab 3	Lab 2 / Con 1
Whitefoot	Lab 2	Con 2	Lab 2	Lab 2

1974 Council:
Labour 49; Conservative 11

1971 Council:
Labour 55; Conservative 5

1968 Council:
Conservative 41; Labour 19

1964 Council:
Labour 45; Conservative 15

References

1. The Bromley and Lewisham (London Borough Boundaries) Order 1993
2. The Bromley, Croydon, Lambeth, Lewisham and Southwark (London Borough Boundaries) Order 1993
3. The Greenwich and Lewisham (London Borough Boundaries) Order 1993
4. The Lewisham and Southwark (London Borough Boundaries) Order 1993

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22. "LOCAL ELECTIONS: Election results". The Guardian. 7 May 1994.