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| Version 1 | Version 2 |
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| Shetland byelection: Liberal Democrats retain Scottish parliament seat | Shetland byelection: Liberal Democrats retain Scottish parliament seat |
| (32 minutes later) | |
| Shetland has elected its first female parliamentarian, as the Liberal Democrats held on to the Holyrood constituency. | Shetland has elected its first female parliamentarian, as the Liberal Democrats held on to the Holyrood constituency. |
| The hard-fought byelection included a high-profile campaign from the Scottish National party,during which the first minister, Nicola Sturgeon, visited the islands three times in a month. | |
| Beatrice Wishart was elected as the new MSP for the area, with 5,659 votes, but the Lib Dems had their majority more than halved from 4,895 in 2016, with the SNP candidate Tom Wills benefiting from a 14.4% swing and the independent candidate Ryan Thomson, a local councillor, also picking up votes. | Beatrice Wishart was elected as the new MSP for the area, with 5,659 votes, but the Lib Dems had their majority more than halved from 4,895 in 2016, with the SNP candidate Tom Wills benefiting from a 14.4% swing and the independent candidate Ryan Thomson, a local councillor, also picking up votes. |
| The byelection was prompted by the resignation of Tavish Scott, a former leader of the Scottish Lib Dems, who had held the seat since the creation of the Scottish parliament in 1999. He announced that he was leaving politics in July to take up a post with Scottish Rugby. | The byelection was prompted by the resignation of Tavish Scott, a former leader of the Scottish Lib Dems, who had held the seat since the creation of the Scottish parliament in 1999. He announced that he was leaving politics in July to take up a post with Scottish Rugby. |
| With 11,835 votes cast, the turnout was 66.5%, up from 62% in the 2016 Scottish parliament election, an indication of the fiercely fought contest. | With 11,835 votes cast, the turnout was 66.5%, up from 62% in the 2016 Scottish parliament election, an indication of the fiercely fought contest. |
| Sturgeon visited Shetland three times during the contest, attracting criticism from opposition candidates that she had never visited the islands as first minister outside an election campaign. | |
| Wishart said she was honoured to “to make a little bit of history by becoming the first female parliamentarian in Shetland” after what she described as a rollercoaster campaign. She said: “Shetland has once again rejected Scottish nationalism and shown that it has not been taken in by the bullying tactics.” | Wishart said she was honoured to “to make a little bit of history by becoming the first female parliamentarian in Shetland” after what she described as a rollercoaster campaign. She said: “Shetland has once again rejected Scottish nationalism and shown that it has not been taken in by the bullying tactics.” |
| Wills said that the SNP had taken Shetland from being Scotland’s safest seat to one of the SNP’s top targets in 2021. “We’ve achieved our best ever result in Shetland and the increase in our vote is hugely encouraging. After 12 years in government, we have given the Lib Dems a run for their money in what was the safest seat in Scotland.” | |
| Polling expert John Curtice said that beating the Lib Dems in their Shetland stronghold “was always going to be a tall order” for the nationalists. | Polling expert John Curtice said that beating the Lib Dems in their Shetland stronghold “was always going to be a tall order” for the nationalists. |
| Although Shetland voted 56.5% in favour of remain during the EU referendum, lower than the 62% across Scotland as a whole, Curtice said he believed that wider issues such as Brexit would not have played a significant role in the contest. | |
| He told BBC Radio Scotland’s Good Morning Scotland programme: “The high turnout shows this was a fiercely local context. This is a part of the world where all politics is local and the Lib Dems are able to say: ‘We are the party that stands up for the interests of Shetland in Holyrood and Edinburgh.’” | |
| Davidson’s departure threatens Scottish Tories and the union | Davidson’s departure threatens Scottish Tories and the union |
| Full results | Full results |
| Beatrice Wishart (LD) 5,659 (47.86%, -19.52%) Tom Wills (SNP) 3,822 (32.32%, +9.27%) Ryan Thomson (Ind) 1,286 (10.88%) Brydon Goodlad (C) 425 (3.59%, -0.07%) Debra Nicolson (Green) 189 (1.6%) Johan Adamson (Lab Co-op) 152 (1.29%, -4.61%) Michael Stout (Ind) 134 (1.13%) Ian Scott (ND) 66 (0.56%) Stuart Martin (UKIP) 60 (0.51%) Peter Tait (Ind) 31 (0.26%) LD majority 1,837 (15.54%) 14.40% swing LD to SNP Electorate 17,810; Turnout 11,824 (66.39%, +4.31%) 2016: LD majority 4,895 (44.33%) – Turnout 11,041 (62.08%) Scott (LD) 7,440 (67.39%); Skene (SNP) 2,545 (23.05%); Barton (Lab) 651 (5.90%); Smith (C) 405 (3.67%) | |
| Scottish politics | Scottish politics |
| Scotland | Scotland |
| Liberal Democrats | Liberal Democrats |
| Nicola Sturgeon | Nicola Sturgeon |
| Scottish National party (SNP) | Scottish National party (SNP) |
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