18-year-old SNP candidate elected as Stirling councillor after by-election win

An 18-year-old SNP candidate has become one of the youngest elected representatives in the UK after winning a Stirling Council by-election, beating out Scottish Labour and Reform UK.

Josh Fyvie was elected with 36% of the vote share on Thursday to represent the Stirling East (Ward 6) on the local council.

Out of 2,250 ballot papers (a 26% turnout), Fyvie received 808 votes.

Scottish Labour candidate Yvonne Dickson received 530 votes (24%) and Reform UK’s William Docherty received 517 (23%).

Scottish Conservative, Greens, and Liberal Democrat candidates each received less than 7% of the vote share.

First Minister John Swinney lent his support to the young candidate in the run-up to the election, and he was pictured with Fyvie and other SNP campaigners in Stirling a week before polls opened.

Speaking after the result, Swinney said: “I am absolutely delighted that Josh Fyvie has won the Stirling East by-election – he will make an excellent addition to the SNP team in Stirling Council.

“This result is a fantastic endorsement of the positive message the SNP is taking to voters across Scotland and we will continue to build on our offer of hope every day.”

In a statement released after his win, the new SNP councillir said: “It is a great honour to be elected as the new SNP councillor for Stirling East and I look forward to doing everything I can to improve the lives of local people.

“I am pleased people have chosen to put their trust in me and the SNP, and I will not let them down.

“This result also clearly shows how deeply disappointed people feel by Labour for delivering nothing more than broken promises and damaging cuts.

“The SNP is now the largest party in Stirling and it is untenable for Labour to continue clinging to power alongside their Tory colleagues.”

Returning officer Brian Roberts said: “Congratulations to Josh on his success in this by-election. Everyone at Stirling Council looks forward to working with him as he assumes his role.”

Stirling Council has 23 elected members, comprised of 10 SNP councillors, 7 Conservative, 4 Labour, 1 Green and 1 Independent.

Mr Roberts, who is also Stirling Council’s chief executive, thanked council staff and everyone involved in the delivery of the Stirling East by-election.

“Holding an election requires detailed planning and preparation as well as effective partnership working,” he said.

“I would like to thank all our dedicated staff and partners, led by the governance service, for their hard work and diligence to successfully deliver the Stirling East by-election.

“It’s important that people engage in the democratic process at local government level as the decisions taken by councils affect the daily lives of residents and communities. Thank you to everyone who participated in this by-election.”