Simita Kumar, the SNP candidate who already leads the SNP group on The City of Edinburgh Council, has won the seat with a majority of 3,289 votes.
She said in her acceptance speech: “It is truly the honour of my life to have earned your trust to serve as your representative, following in the footsteps of the brilliant Gordon MacDonald.
“I will work every single day to be worthy of that trust to everyone who voted, whether you supported me and the SNP or chose a different path. I want you to know this. I am here for all of you. My commitment is to every person, every family, every street, every neighbourhood, from Calders to Wester Hailes, from Hutchison to Oxgangs, the Pentlands and beyond, I will work tirelessly to ensure our community thrives where opportunity is shared, services are accessible, and no one feels left behind to all political colleagues across the spectrum.
“We won’t always agree, and that’s okay, but we must let kindness and civility guide us, even in disagreement, I stand here today with a vision of an independent Scotland, one that looks forward with confidence, a Scotland builds on self determination, where decisions about our lives are made by those who live them, a Scotland where everyone has the chance, Not just to get by, but to truly thrive in dignity, inequality and opportunity. So let’s move forward with that hope.”
The votes for each candidate was as follows:
KUMAR, Simita – Scottish National Party (SNP) 11,727 votes
MUNRO, Catriona – Scottish Labour Party 8,438 votes
ROSE, Cameron – Reform UK 3,936 votes
WEBBER, Sue – Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party 4,636 votes
WILLIAMSON, Andy – Scottish Liberal Democrats 3,672 votes
