Two council by-elections to be held in Edinburgh

Two SNP councillors in Edinburgh are to step down later this week sparking by-elections in the city in September.

The councillor for Southside/Newington, Simita Kumar, has confirmed she is to step down, and Cllr Kate Campbell, who represents Portobello/Craigmillar is also resigning, which will lead to two by-elections in the south and east of the city.

An SNP spokesperson said: “Balancing the two very important roles of councillor and MSP has been something both Simita and Kate have been considering over the last few weeks – with the issue becoming more of an urgent question following Simita’s appointment as a government minister.  

“Both SNP councillors have today tendered their resignation – effective from Thursday 4th June – to the Chief Executive in order to allow the council to manage the by-elections cost effectively and efficiently.

“The SNP group in Edinburgh hopes to soon have two new, talented SNP councillors join the team standing up for people across Edinburgh.”

Ms Kumar was elected as a constituency MSP at the May election and was also selected as a member of John Swinney’s new cabinet. She is now Minister for Equalities and International Development.

And, despite hopping to remain a councillor until next May when the council elections will be held, she has decided that the new government role means she has to step down as a councillor.

Ms Kumar, who was first elected as a councillor in 2022, said: “It’s been an honour to represent Southside Newington, a place I love and one that continues to inspire me with its resilience, its incredible local organisations and the strength of the people who call it home. 

“While I am stepping down from this role, I know Southside Newington has a bright future ahead, and I am confident we will put forward an SNP candidate with the energy and commitment needed to continue championing this fantastic area.

“It has also been a huge privilege to lead the SNP group, and I look forward to seeing the group fight for a better future for our city under the leadership of Lesley Macinnes.”

There are three other councillors in the ward – Steve Burgess, Scottish Green Party, Pauline Flannery, Scottish Liberal Democrats and Tim Pogson, Labour and Cooperative Party. At the 2022 election the electorate was 24,152 and the turnout 49.2% with 11,884 votes cast.

Most votes were cast for Cllr Pogson who had 2,837 votes, in second place was Steve Burgess with 2,717 votes and Cllr Kumar had 2,260 votes. Cllr Flannery had 1,897 votes, but was elected after the application of the Single Transferable Vote calculation.

Only Cameron Rose the Scottish Conservative and Unionist candidate was not elected – he had 2,077 votes. In the interim Cameron Rose – a former group leader on the council’s Tory group – has joined Reform UK Scotland. He stood in the recent Scottish Parliament election in Edinburgh South Western – the seat won by Simita Kumar – and had 3,936 votes. Ms Kumar won with 11,727 votes, a majority of 3,289. The next biggest share of the vote in the Scottish election went to Catriona Munro the Labour candidate who got 8,438 votes.

Cllr Kate Campbell who was elected as MSP for Edinburgh Eastern, Musselburgh and Tranent on 7 May has also decided she has to concentrate on one job. Cllr Campbell served as Housing and Economy Convener during the last administration which was a coalition between the SNP and Labour, just a year after becoming a councillor in 2017. The ward is also represented by Cllrs Tim Jones (Cons), Cllr Jane Meagher (Labour) and Cllr Alys Mumford (Greens.

Previously Cllr Campbell worked with Tommy Sheppard, who was formerly an SNP MP, in his constituency office. She studied film-making at Edinburgh College and then worked in a call centre before taking a stance during the 2014 referendum and eventually joining the SNP.

In 2022 Cllr Campbell received a majority of the first preference votes in the council election – 3,438 votes or 30.7%. The electorate was 26,118 and the turnout 11,426 votes cast which is 43.7%. The candidate who obtained the second highest share of the votes was Jane Meagher for whom 2,099 votes were cast.

Cllr Campbell said: “Representing the amazing communities of Portobello and Craigmillar has been an honour over the last nine years and I look forward to continuing to represent them as their MSP. 

“I look forward to campaigning for the SNP candidate who hopes to take over from me and, hopefully, working alongside them to continue the to improve the lives of local people.”