2011 Scottish Parliament Election Results
The 2011 Scottish Parliament Election occurred on May 5th, 2011.
Contents |
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | Percentage | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liberal Democrats | Tavish Scott | 4,462 | 47.5% | -19.2 |
| Independent | Billy Fox | 2,845 | 30.3% | +30.3 |
| Scottish National Party | Jean Urquhart | 1,134 | 12.1% | -4.5 |
| Scottish Labour | Jamie Kerr | 620 | 6.6% | -0.2 |
| Scottish Conservative and Unionist | Sandy Cross | 330 | 3.5% | -6.4 |
| Turnout | 9,391 | 53.4% |
Candidates
Sandy Cross
Sandy Cross is an investment manager who has a mussel growing business and farming at Vementry.
He stood as the Scottish Conservative and Unionst candidate.
Billy Fox
Billy Fox is a freelance photographer. He stood as an independent.
He was also well known in Shetland as Chairman of Sustainable Shetland, a group against the Viking Energy windfarm project. He has since rescinded his position and ties to Sustainable Shetland upon the announcement of his candidature.
Jamie Kerr
Jamie Kerr stood for the Scottish Labour Party, and is of Renfrewshire descent. The Shetland News website describes Kerr as " A human right lawyer with central belt law firm Drummond Miller LLP, Mr Kerr said he had served the party in a number of branches across Scotland." [1]
Tavish Scott
Tavish Scott was the leader of the Scottish Liberal Democrats and has represented Shetland in the Scottish Parliament since 1999. He holds a BA from the University of Napier in Edinburgh, and upon graduating he worked as a parliamentary assistant to former Orkney and Shetland MP Jim Wallace. In 1994, he was elected as a Shetland Islands Councillor for the Lerwick Harbour and Bressay ward, a position he held until 1999. During which, he was the Chairman of the Harbour Trust
He lives in Gardie House, a large mansion on Bressay which had previously belonged his father, John Scott, the Lord Lieutenant of Shetland.
Scott experienced a major decline in his vote in Shetland, but he was one of only two Lib Dem MSPs to hold onto a constituency seat. Due to the collapse in the Lib Dem across Scotland in this election, he resigned as leader of the Scottish party.
Jean Urquhart
Urquhart stood as a Scottish National Party candidate, and is a hotel owner.