Latest headlines
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Victory for the SNP with 63 seats - two short of a majority
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Conservatives are the second largest party on 31 seats - but Labour on 24 lost 13 seats
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Scottish Greens are the fourth largest party with six seats, ahead of the Lib Dems who won five
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See the changing political map of Scotland
Scoreboard
Party | Candidates | Votes | % | Net percentage change in seats |
---|---|---|---|---|
Party
SNP Scottish National Party |
Candidates Clare Haughey | Votes 15,222 | 46.2% | Net percentage change in seats +6.7 |
Party
LAB Scottish Labour |
Candidates James Kelly | Votes 11,479 | 34.8% | Net percentage change in seats −11.2 |
Party
CON Scottish Conservatives |
Candidates Taylor Muir | Votes 3,718 | 11.3% | Net percentage change in seats +3.5 |
Party
LD Scottish Lib Dems |
Candidates Robert Brown | Votes 2,533 | 7.7% | Net percentage change in seats +3.4 |
Change compared with 2011 |
Turnout and Majority
Scottish National Party Majority
3,743Turnout
54.3%Constituency Profile
Rutherglen was once a burgh - the oldest in Scotland - until local government reorganisation in 1975, and lies to the south east of Glasgow city centre. The name Rutherglen is said to come from Gaelic for "reddish glen" after the red clay found here.
At its northern border it blends into Glasgow's suburbs, though the town has always striven to maintain a distinct identity from Glasgow, which it predates by 500 years. The seat includes not only Rutherglen itself but also the town of Cambuslang, Burnside and the housing scheme at Fernhill, as well as Blantyre, all of which lie within the local government control of South Lanarkshire. Steel and pottery have been major industries in the past, but both have been in decline.
Janis Hughes won the seat for the Labour Party in the 1999 and 2003 elections. James Kelly then held the seat in 2007 and 2011.