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Argyll and Bute (Scottish Parliament constituency)

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Not to be confused with Argyll and Bute (UK Parliament constituency).

Argyll and Bute
County constituency
for the Scottish Parliament
Argyll and Bute shown within the Highlands and Islands electoral region and the region shown within Scotland
Population60,394 (2019)[1]
Current constituency
Created1999
PartyScottish National Party
MSPJenni Minto
Council areaArgyll and Bute

Argyll and Bute (Gaelic: Earra-Ghàidheal agus Bòd) is a constituency of the Scottish Parliament (Holyrood) covering most of the council area of Argyll and Bute. It elects one Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) by the first past the post method of election. It is also one of eight constituencies in the Highlands and Islands electoral region, which elects seven additional members, in addition to the eight constituency MSPs, to produce a form of proportional representation for the region as a whole.

The seat has been held by Jenni Minto of the Scottish National Party since the 2021 Scottish Parliament election.

Electoral region

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See also: Highlands and Islands (Scottish Parliament electoral region)

The Argyll and Bute constituency is part of the Highlands and Islands electoral region; the other seven constituencies are Caithness, Sutherland and Ross, Inverness and Nairn, Moray, Na h-Eileanan an Iar, Orkney, Shetland and Skye, Lochaber and Badenoch.

The region covers most of Argyll and Bute council area, all of the Highland council area, most of the Moray council area, all of the Orkney Islands council area, all of the Shetland Islands council area and all of Na h-Eileanan Siar.

Constituency boundaries and council area

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The Argyll and Bute constituency was created at the same time as the Scottish Parliament, in 1999, with the name and boundaries of an existing Westminster constituency. In 2005, however, the Westminster (House of Commons) constituency was enlarged slightly.[2]

The Holyrood constituency covers most of the Argyll and Bute council area. The rest of the council area (which includes the town of Helensburgh) is covered by the Dumbarton constituency in the West Scotland electoral region. The Argyll and Bute Westminster constituency has covered the whole of the council area since 2005.

From the 2011 Scottish Parliament election, boundary changes altered the existing Argyll and Bute constituency. All but three electoral wards of the Argyll and Bute council area were used in the creation of the new seat, namely:

As of 2019, Argyll and Bute's population (60,394) was the lowest among the 70 Holyrood mainland constituencies, barely two-thirds of the total of those at the top of the list, headed by Linlithgow which had over 95,000 within its boundaries.[1]

Member of the Scottish Parliament

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Election Member Party
1999 George Lyon Liberal Democrats
2007 Jim Mather Scottish National Party
2011 Michael Russell
2021 Jenni Minto

Election results

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Argyll & Bute election results 1999-2021

2020s

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2021 Scottish Parliament election: Argyll and Bute[3]
Party Candidate Constituency Regional
Votes % ±% Votes % ±%
SNP Jenni Minto 16,608 49.5 Increase3.5 13,966 41.5 Decrease0.2
Conservative Donald Cameron[a][b] 7,645 22.8 Increase3.0 8,563 25.5 Increase1.3
Liberal Democrats Alan Reid 6,874 20.5 Decrease5.2 3,659 10.9 Decrease2.1
Labour Lewis Whyte 2,436 7.3 Decrease1.2 2,829 8.4 Decrease0.9
Scottish Green 2,661 7.9 Increase0.4
Alba 589 1.8 New
Independent Andy Wightman[c] 423 1.3 New
All for Unity 290 0.9 New
Scottish Family 189 0.6 New
Abolish the Scottish Parliament 113 0.3 New
Freedom Alliance (UK) 67 0.2 New
Reform UK 63 0.2 New
Scottish Libertarian 60 0.2 New
UKIP 59 0.2 Decrease2.1
Restore Scotland 36 0.1 New
TUSC 32 0.1 New
Independent Hazel Mansfield 29 0.1 New
Majority 8,963 26.7 Increase6.4
Valid Votes 33,563 33,628
Invalid Votes 165 84
Turnout 33,728 67.8 Increase6.8 33,712 67.8 Increase6.8
SNP hold Swing Increase0.3
Notes
  1. ^ Incumbent member on the party list
  2. ^ Re-elected via list
  3. ^ Incumbent member on the list for Lothian region, having been elected as a member of the Scottish Greens in 2016

2010s

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2016 Scottish Parliament election: Argyll and Bute[4][5]
Party Candidate Constituency Regional
Votes % ±% Votes % ±%
SNP Michael Russell[a] 13,561 46.0 Decrease4.6 12,327 41.7 Decrease7.8
Liberal Democrats Alan Reid 7,583 25.7 Increase13.5 3,856 13.0 Increase4.9
Conservative Donald Cameron 5,840 19.8 Increase1.5 7,151 24.2 Increase8.6
Labour Mick Rice 2,492 8.5 Decrease6.8 2,739 9.3 Decrease5.0
Scottish Green 2,213 7.5 Increase2.6
UKIP 679 2.3 Increase0.9
Scottish Christian 193 0.7 Decrease0.2
Solidarity 162 0.5 Increase0.3
Independent James Stockan 153 0.5 New
RISE 86 0.3 New
Majority 5,978 20.3 Decrease12.0
Valid Votes 29,476 29,559
Invalid Votes 116 36
Turnout 29,592 61.0 Increase6.6 29,295 61.0 Increase6.5
SNP hold Swing Decrease9.1
Notes
  1. ^ Incumbent member for this constituency
2011 Scottish Parliament election: Argyll and Bute[6][7]
Party Candidate Constituency Regional
Votes % ±% Votes % ±%
SNP Michael Russell[a] 13,390 50.6 N/A 13,172 49.5 N/A
Conservative Jamie McGrigor[a] 4,847 18.3 N/A 4,156 15.6 N/A
Labour Mick Rice 4,041 15.3 N/A 3,804 14.3 N/A
Liberal Democrats Alison Hay 3,220 12.2 N/A 2,155 8.1 N/A
Scottish Green 1,304 4.9 N/A
Independent George Doyle 542 2.0 N/A
All-Scotland Pensioners Party 436 1.6 N/A
UKIP 362 1.4 N/A
Liberal George White 436 1.6 N/A 247 0.9 N/A
Scottish Christian 231 0.9 N/A
Socialist Labour 204 0.8 N/A
Ban Bankers Bonuses 198 0.7 N/A
BNP 183 0.9 N/A
Scottish Socialist 95 0.4 N/A
Solidarity 50 0.2 N/A
Majority 8,543 32.3 N/A
Valid Votes 26,476 26,597
Invalid Votes 120 61
Turnout 26,596 54.4 N/A 26,658 54.5 N/A
SNP win (new boundaries)
Notes
  1. ^ a b Incumbent member on the party list, or for another constituency

2000s

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2007 Scottish Parliament election: Argyll and Bute
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
SNP Jim Mather 9,944 34.5 +14.9
Liberal Democrats George Lyon 9,129 31.7 −3.4
Conservative Jamie McGrigor 5,571 19.4 −0.7
Labour Mary Galbraith 4,148 14.4 −3.9
Majority 815 2.8 N/A
Turnout 28,792 58.9 +1.1
SNP gain from Liberal Democrats Swing +9.2
2003 Scottish Parliament election: Argyll and Bute
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal Democrats George Lyon 9,817 35.1 +0.2
Conservative Dave Petrie 5,621 20.1 +3.6
SNP Jim Mather 5,485 19.6 −8.9
Labour Hugh Raven 5,107 18.3 −1.8
Scottish Socialist Des Divers 1,667 5.9 New
Scottish People's David Walker 251 0.9 New
Majority 4,196 15.0 +8.6
Turnout 27,948 57.8 −7.0
Liberal Democrats hold Swing

1990s

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1999 Scottish Parliament election: Argyll and Bute
Party Candidate Votes %
Liberal Democrats George Lyon 11,226 34.9
SNP Duncan Hamilton 9,169 28.5
Labour Hugh Raven 6,470 20.1
Conservative David Petrie 5,312 16.5
Majority 2,057 6.4
Turnout 32,177 64.8
Liberal Democrats win (new seat)

Footnotes

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  1. ^ a b Scottish Parliamentary Constituency (SPC) Population Estimates (2011 Data Zone based), National Records of Scotland; retrieved 6 May 2021 (accompanying summary notes)
  2. ^ See The 5th Periodical Report of the Boundary Commission for Scotland Archived 21 September 2007 at the Wayback Machine
  3. ^ "Scottish Parliamentary Election 6 May 2021 - Results". Argyll and Bute Council. 6 May 2021. Retrieved 11 June 2021.
  4. ^ "Declaration of Constituency Result" (PDF). Argyll and Bute Council. 5 May 2016. Retrieved 11 June 2021.
  5. ^ "Declaration of Regional Result" (PDF). Argyll and Bute Council. 5 May 2016. Retrieved 11 June 2021.
  6. ^ "Result of Scottish Parliament election - Highlands and Islands region". Argyll and Bute Council. 6 May 2011. Retrieved 11 June 2021.
  7. ^ "Result of election to Scottish Parliament". Argyll and Bute Council. 6 May 2011. Retrieved 11 June 2021.
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