The Scottish Liberal Democrats have recently come under fire for allegedly using deceptive tactics to win a by-election in Edinburgh. Louise Spence, a member of the Lib Dems, was elected as councillor for the city’s Colinton and Fairmilehead ward, despite finishing fourth in the same ward’s council elections in 2022.
This victory has brought the Lib Dems to a total of 14 councillors, making them the second-largest party at the City Chambers, behind the SNP. The Labour party, who currently holds a minority administration, has 11 seats, followed by the Greens with 10, and the Tories with nine, along with one independent councillor.
Leading up to the by-election, the Lib Dems were accused of distributing misleading leaflets to voters, claiming they were challenging the SNP and showing a bar chart placing them in second place. However, opponents argue that this information misrepresented the actual results from the 2022 election, where the Lib Dems came in fourth.
After the announcement of the by-election results, SNP Councillor Simita Kumar criticized the tactics used by the Lib Dems, accusing them of misinformation and calling for Labour to step aside from running the local authority. Kumar emphasized the importance of honesty and integrity in winning seats, suggesting that the Lib Dems’ tactics were deceptive.
The by-election was triggered by the resignation of Scott Arthur, a Scottish Labour MP for Edinburgh South West, which led to Sheila Gilmore of Scottish Labour running to replace him. In a surprising turn of events, Gilmore came in third place, just thirteen votes behind Scottish Tory candidate Neil Cuthbert.
Alex Cole-Hamilton, a representative of the Scottish Liberal Democrats, expressed gratitude to everyone who supported the campaign and congratulated Louise Spence on her victory. Spence, in turn, expressed her delight at being elected and thanked her supporters and voters for their trust.
The win for the Lib Dems is seen as a significant achievement and a statement of ambition for the party. Despite the controversy surrounding their campaign tactics, Spence’s election as councillor for Colinton & Fairmilehead is a moment of celebration for the Scottish Liberal Democrats.
Scottish Labour has yet to provide a comment on the outcome of the by-election.
