Edinburgh election: Council by-election in Corstorphine/Murrayfield ward to replace former Lord Provost Frank Ross

Replacement needed for Edinburgh’s former Lord Provost

The by-election to choose a new councillors for Corstorphine/Murrayfield ward following the resignation of the SNP’s former Lord Provost Frank Ross will take place on Thursday, March 9.

Councillor Ross, who was re-elected for the ward in May last year, quit shortly before Christmas following a controversial vote at a full council meeting. The SNP group failed to back a Tory motion which would have secured compensation for traders in Roseburn who had lost a lot of business due to a major construction project by the council outside their shops, despite Cllr Ross arguing in favour of such payments.

Cllr Ross had been a councillor since 2012 and he served as SNP group leader for a year in the run-up to the 2017 council elections before being ousted by the current group leader Adam McVey.

Former Lord Provost Franks Ross resigned as a councillor shortly before Christmas.

Corstorphine/Murrayfield ward, which also covers Balgreen, Broomhall, Carrick Knowe, Ravelston and Roseburn, has a current electorate of 19,287. Nominations for candidates will close at 4pm on February 6. Polling stations will be open from 7am to 10pm on Thursday March 9. Details of polling station locations will be announced shortly.

The election will use the Single Transferable Vote (STV) system, where voters can rank candidates in order of preference rather than using a single cross. Voters can give a rank to as many or as few candidates as they like. The votes will be counted electronically at the close of poll in the council headquarters at Waverley Court, East Market Street from 10pm on March 9.

Returning officer and council chief executive Andrew Kerr said: “Frank Ross made an important contribution to the political and civic life of the capital through his service on the Council and as Lord Provost and I wish him well in the future. Voters in the Corstorphine/Murrayfield ward now have a chance to make their voices heard again to elect a councillor to take his place to represent them on the council of the city.”

Residents can find out how to register to vote on the council website.