Liberal Democrats leadership election, 1999

Liberal Democrats leadership election, 1999
United Kingdom

 
Candidate Charles Kennedy Simon Hughes Malcolm Bruce
1st Rd. Votes 22,724 16,233 4,643
1st Rd. % 44.6 31.8 9.1
2nd Rd. Votes 23,619 17,378 5,241
2nd Rd. % 46.5 34.2 10.3
3rd Rd. Votes 25,164 19,360 6.608
3rd Rd. % 49.7 38.3 12.0

Leader before election

Paddy Ashdown

Elected Leader

Charles Kennedy

The 1999 Liberal Democrats leadership election was called following the resignation of Paddy Ashdown as leader. There were five candidates and all members of the party were balloted using the Alternative Vote preference system. The election was won by Charles Kennedy, who served as leader until his resignation in 2006.

The chief issue in the election was whether the party should continue its partial collaboration with the Labour Party, which had seen Ashdown and other senior Liberal Democrats appointed to a joint Cabinet committee on electoral reform. Most of the candidates were to various degrees sceptical about this approach, with Simon Hughes the most hostile and Charles Kennedy the strongest defender of Ashdown. The campaign was almost entirely free of bitterness and outspoken comments. Kennedy was generally favoured by the press because of his name recognition, which derived from his frequent appearances on light-hearted panel games on television.

Results

First round
Candidate Change Votes %
Charles Kennedy - 22,724 44.6
Simon Hughes - 16,233 31.8
Malcolm Bruce - 4,643 9.1
Jackie Ballard - 3,978 7.8
David Rendel - 3,428 6.7
Turnout 51,006 62%
Second round
Candidate Change Votes %
Charles Kennedy +895 23,619 46.5
Simon Hughes +1,145 17,378 34.2
Malcolm Bruce +598 5,241 10.3
Jackie Ballard +627 4,605 9.1
David Rendel -3,428 - -
Not transferable +163 163 -
Third round
Candidate Change Votes %
Charles Kennedy +1,545 25,164 49.7
Simon Hughes +1,982 19,360 38.3
Malcolm Bruce +827 6,068 12.0
Jackie Ballard -4,605 - -
Not transferable +251 414 -
Final round
Candidate Change Votes %
Charles Kennedy +3,261 28,425 56.6
Simon Hughes +2,473 21,833 43.4
Malcolm Bruce -6,068 - -
Not transferable +334 748 -

References

External links

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