EAST KILBRIDE
Winner in 2016: Linda Fabiani (SNP)
EAST Kilbride has a special place in the hearts of SNP supporters. When Linda Fabiani gained it in 2011, it was the first seat of the election to change hands, and the scale of the swing pointed the way towards a totally unexpected SNP overall majority.
There was also powerful symbolism due to the defeated Labour MSP being the former cabinet minister Andy Kerr, who was one of several big-hitters to lose their seats entirely due to Labour not bothering to give them a back-up opportunity on the regional list.
Although the seat had been considered a long shot for the SNP prior to Fabiani’s breakthrough, there had been a sign in the distant past that the party could at least be competitive in East Kilbride.
In the October 1974 Westminster General Election, which was the SNP’s pre-devolution high watermark across Scotland, they came within around five percentage points of displacing the local Labour MP Maurice Miller.
Having missed that golden chance, though, they not only slipped to fourth place in the two 1980s General Elections, but also found themselves scoring a lower vote share in the constituency than they were managing nationally.
Recent times have been considerably happier, and the SNP now hold both the Holyrood and Westminster constituencies with majorities of well over 10,000 votes.
Fabiani is stepping aside this year, but with a massive swing of 16% required for Labour to take the seat back, the new SNP candidate Collette Stevenson should be virtually assured of a place in the Scottish Parliament.
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