2023 Thurrock Council election

The 2023 Thurrock Council election took place on 4 May 2023 to elect a third of the members of Thurrock Council in Essex, England.^[2] This was on the same day as other local elections across England.

2023 Thurrock Council election^[1]

← 2022 4 May 2023 (2023-05-04) 2024 →
16 out of 49 seats to Thurrock Council 25 seats needed for a majority
First party Second party   Leader Mark Coxshall John Kent Party Conservative Labour Leader's seat Chafford & North Stifford (lost re-election) Grays Thurrock Last election 30 seats, 48.3% 14 seats, 47.9% Seats before 29 14 Seats won 4 9 Seats after 26 19 Seat change 2 5 Popular vote 8,490 11,833 Percentage 32.4% 45.1% Swing 15.7% 3.0%   Third party Fourth party   Leader N/A Gary Byrne Party Independent Thurrock Ind. Leader's seat N/A The Homesteads Last election 1 seat, 2.2% 3 seats, 1.7% Seats before 3 3 Seats won 2 1 Seats after 3 1 Seat change 1 4 Popular vote 2,633 2,706 Percentage 10.0% 10.3% Swing 7.8% 8.6%
Winner of each seat at the 2023 Thurrock Council election
Leader before election Mark Coxshall Conservative Leader after election Andrew Jefferies Conservative

The Conservatives narrowly retained their majority on the council at the election, but lost three seats compared to the position immediately before the election. The election was held in the context of the council having declared effective bankruptcy with debts of about £1.5 billion and a government-appointed commissioner having been installed to oversee the council's financial management. The Conservative leader of the council, Mark Coxshall, and the cabinet member for finance, Shane Hebb, were two of the three who lost their seats.^[3][4] At the subsequent annual council meeting on 24 May 2023, Andrew Jefferies was appointed the new leader.^[5]

Summary

Election result

2023 Thurrock Council election
Party		This election			Full council			This election
		Seats	Net	Seats %	Other	Total	Total %	Votes	Votes %	+/−
	Conservative	4	2	25.0	22	26	53.1	8,490	32.4	–15.7
	Labour	9	5	56.3	10	19	38.8	11,833	45.1	–3.0
	Independent	2	1	12.5	1	3	6.1	2,633	10.0	+7.8
	Thurrock Ind.	1	4	6.3	0	1	2.0	2,706	10.3	+8.6
	Reform UK	0		0.0	0	0	0.0	436	1.7	N/A
	UKIP	0		0.0	0	0	0.0	79	0.3	N/A
	Green	0		0.0	0	0	0.0	64	0.2	N/A

Ward results

The Statement of Persons Nominated, which details the candidates standing in each ward, was released by Thurrock Council following the close of nomination on 5 April 2023.^[6]

Seat changes are relative to the 2019 election and do not take into account any interim by-elections or defections. Vote share changes are relative to the last time the seat was up for election.

Aveley & Uplands

Aveley & Uplands

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Jacqui Maney	928	52.7	+3.3
	Labour	Cathy Sisterson	834	47.3	–3.3
Majority			96	5.4	N/A
Turnout			1,777	23.6	+0.3
Registered electors			7,519
	Conservative hold		Swing	3.3

Belhus

Belhus

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Mark Hurrell	765	48.5	–0.3
	Conservative	Abbie Akinbohun	433	27.5	–23.7
	Thurrock Ind.	Chris Baker*	299	19.0	N/A
	UKIP	Michael Keal	79	5.0	N/A
Majority			332	21.0	N/A
Turnout			1,579	21.9	–1.9
Registered electors			7,210
	Labour gain from Thurrock Ind.		Swing	11.7

Chadwell St. Mary

Chadwell St. Mary

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Daniel Chukwu*	1,256	73.1	+13.3
	Conservative	Sophie Corcoran	462	26.9	–13.3
Majority			794	46.2	+26.6
Turnout			1,741	23.8	–2.9
Registered electors			7,317
	Labour hold		Swing	13.3

Chafford & North Stifford

Chafford & North Stifford

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Vikki Hartstean	741	49.1	+18.2
	Conservative	Mark Coxshall*	639	42.3	–26.8
	Reform UK	Sue Truman	129	8.5	N/A
Majority			102	6.8	N/A
Turnout			1,514	27.1
Registered electors			5,581
	Labour gain from Conservative		Swing	22.5

Corringham & Fobbing

Corringham & Fobbing

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Deborah Arnold	555	39.0	–31.3
	Thurrock Ind.	John Fox	545	38.3	N/A
	Labour	Ngozi Alike	324	22.8	–6.9
Majority			10	0.7	–39.9
Turnout			1,427	32.5
Registered electors			4,391
	Conservative hold		Swing	N/A

East Tilbury

East Tilbury

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent	Fraser Massey*	980	74.9	N/A
	Labour	Alastair Craft	245	18.7	+2.0
	Conservative	Daryl Palmer	83	6.3	–36.5
Majority			735	56.2	N/A
Turnout			1,317	25.2
Registered electors			5,222
	Independent hold		Swing	N/A

Grays Riverside

Grays Riverside

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Valerie Morris-Cook	1,191	75.5	+3.6
	Conservative	Emily Folorunsho	386	24.5	–3.6
Majority			805	51.0	+7.2
Turnout			1,590	19.4	–6.6
Registered electors			8,206
	Labour hold		Swing	3.6

Grays Thurrock

Grays Thurrock

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Catherine Kent*	1,151	68.6	+0.5
	Conservative	Elizabeth Alo	343	20.5	–11.4
	Reform UK	Roy Grayson	183	10.9	N/A
Majority			808	48.1	+11.9
Turnout			1,691	25.5	–0.5
Registered electors			6,644
	Labour hold		Swing	6.0

Little Thurrock Rectory

Little Thurrock Rectory

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Tom Kelly*	580	39.7	–16.0
	Labour	Enayet Sarwar	550	37.6	–6.7
	Thurrock Ind.	Russell Cherry	332	22.7	N/A
Majority			30	2.1	–9.2
Turnout			1,467	32.3	+1.8
Registered electors			4,539
	Conservative hold		Swing	4.7

Ockendon

Ockendon

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Andrew Jefferies*	1,014	48.3	–5.5
	Labour	Gary Watson	839	39.9	–6.3
	Thurrock Ind.	Ross Byrne	248	11.8	N/A
Majority			175	8.4	+0.8
Turnout			2,110	25.3	+1.9
Registered electors			8,333
	Conservative hold		Swing	0.6

Stanford East & Corringham Town

Stanford East & Corringham Town

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	John Cecil	667	37.2	+7.7
	Conservative	Shane Ralph*	568	31.7	–14.7
	Independent	Roy Jones	559	31.2	N/A
Majority			99	5.5	N/A
Turnout			1,806	28.6	+0.4
Registered electors			6,317
	Labour gain from Thurrock Ind.		Swing	11.2

Stanford-le-Hope West

Stanford-le-Hope West

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent	Neil Speight	643	38.1	N/A
	Labour	Philip Smith	532	31.6	+9.6
	Conservative	Shane Hebb*	511	30.3	–20.1
Majority			111	6.5	N/A
Turnout			1,691	30.5
Registered electors			5,537
	Independent gain from Conservative		Swing	N/A

Stifford Clays

Stifford Clays

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Mark Hooper	610	40.9	–6.1
	Conservative	Gavin Holland	476	31.9	–21.1
	Thurrock Ind.	Jennifer Smith*	340	22.8	N/A
	Green	Jack Beauchamp-Stansfield	64	4.3	N/A
Majority			134	9.0	N/A
Turnout			1,498	29.9	+1.2
Registered electors			5,006
	Labour gain from Thurrock Ind.		Swing	7.5

The Homesteads

The Homesteads

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Thurrock Ind.	Gary Byrne*	942	42.6	N/A
	Conservative	Shamim Miah	603	27.2	–38.7
	Labour	Tony Benson	544	24.6	–9.5
	Reform UK	Bill Poskitt	124	5.6	N/A
Majority			339	15.4	N/A
Turnout			2,229	35.0	+1.8
Registered electors			6,376
	Thurrock Ind. hold		Swing	N/A

Tilbury Riverside & Thurrock Park

Tilbury Riverside & Thurrock Park

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Cici Manwa	486	45.0	+11.0
	Independent	Craig Austin	451	41.7	N/A
	Conservative	Allen Mayes*	144	13.3	–9.2
Majority			35	3.3	N/A
Turnout			1,083	22.4	–4.0
Registered electors			4,826
	Labour gain from Thurrock Ind.		Swing	N/A

West Thurrock & South Stifford

West Thurrock & South Stifford

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour Co-op	Aaron Green	1,098	58.9	+12.6
	Conservative	Tunde Ojetola	765	41.1	–12.6
Majority			333	17.8	N/A
Turnout			1,892	21.2	–3.5
Registered electors			8,908
	Labour Co-op hold		Swing	12.6

Changes 2023–2024

Sue Sammons, elected as a Conservative, left the party in July 2023 to sit as an independent.^[7]

The Thurrock Independents disbanded in July 2023, with their one remaining councillor, Gary Byrne, then becoming an independent.^[8]

References

1. "Vote 2023". Thurrock Council. 5 May 2023. Retrieved 5 May 2023.
2. "Notice of Election" (PDF). Thurrock Council. 24 March 2023. Retrieved 10 April 2023.
3. Whitehouse, Ellis (5 May 2023). "Local Elections 2023: Thurrock Council leader loses seat as Conservatives take heavy losses". Essex Live. Retrieved 30 May 2023.
4. "Local elections 2023: The electorate have given us a beating - Tory MP". BBC News. 5 May 2023. Retrieved 30 May 2023.
5. "New Mayor and Leader". Thurrock Council. 25 May 2023. Retrieved 30 May 2023.
6. "Statement of Persons Nominated" (PDF). Thurrock Council. 4 April 2023. Retrieved 10 April 2023.
7. "Bus decision is final straw for Tory councillor and she quits Tories". Nub News. 13 July 2023. Retrieved 19 January 2024.
8. "Thurrock Independents". Electoral Commission. Retrieved 19 January 2024.