The Conservatives are looking to defend a seat in Scotland the jailing of a local councillor triggered a by-election.Bearsden South ward in East Dunbartonshire will be up for grabs with seven candidates vying to take home the ward.The Tories are looking to defend their seat, after Andrew Polson was disqualified following his conviction last Novemeber for romantic fraud.The last election in the ward was held in 2022.
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Bearsden South is in fact an STV ward, meaning under the Scottish election system, three councillors are elected.Following Polson’s departure from his post, two councillors remain on the council. The SNP’s Ian Gallagher was elected four years ago, with 23.39 per cent of the vote.The Lib Dems’ incumbent councillor, Vaughan Moody, received 23.12 per cent in 2022.The Scottish Conservatives suspended Polson after accusations of fraud came to light.Polson then stood as an independent councillor until his sentence, which meant disqualification as a councillor.East Dunbartonshire Council has been under a minority SNP leadership since the 2022 elections.Gordan Low was appointed MP in the region, with the SNPs having eight councillors.Full list of candidates from Bearsden South (East Dunbartonshire):Lorna Dougall (Labour)Duncan Evans (Conservative)John Fairlie (Reform UK)Lynne Gibbons (SNP)Ben Langmead (Liberal Democrats)Liam McKechnie (Scottish Family Party)Emma Sheppard (Scottish Green Party)LATEST DEVELOPMENTS:Fareham locals left divided over Suella Braverman after defecting to ReformEx-Labour MP charged with sexual assaultJudge demands Ice chief to appear in court over handling of migrantsBoth the SNPs and the Lib Dems will be hoping to double up, already having a councillor in a seat for the ward.The Tories, however, are looking to reclaim their seat. As for Reform, they are looking to build a bit of momentum north of the border.Last month, they achieved their first by-election victory in Scotland when David McLennan was elected as a councillor for the Whitburn and Blackburn ward in West Lothian. He took the seat from Scottish Labour.Just 0.27 per cent of the vote separated the top three in 2022’s Bearsdown South election.In November 2025, Polson was sentenced to 22 months in prison after carrying out £188,000 of romance fraud.He persuaded his former partner to give him money to buy property to sell or rent out, but put his sole name on the title deeds without telling her.He was also convicted of embezzling more than £9,000 from Christian radio station Revival FM after being found guilty during a trial at Glasgow Sheriff Court.Detective Chief Inspector Jamie Campbell said: “Polson abused the trust placed in him and acted dishonestly to gain substantial sums of money from his victim and from a charity. “This case illustrates how personal relationships can be exploited for financial gain and the harm this can cause. “Police Scotland remains committed to thoroughly investigating financial crimes and bringing those responsible to account.”Polson was also given a three-year non-harassment order prohibiting his contact with his victim and disqualified from being the director of a company for five years.Our Standards:
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