Lothian (Scottish Parliament electoral region) facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Lothian
electoral region for the Scottish Parliament
Lothian shown within Scotland
Council areas	City of Edinburgh East Lothian (part) Midlothian (part) West Lothian
Population	786,439 (2019)
Current electoral region
Created	2011
MSPs	Scottish National Party 7 Conservative 3 Labour 3 Scottish Green 2 Liberal Democrats 1
Constituencies	Almond Valley Edinburgh Central Edinburgh Eastern Edinburgh Northern and Leith Edinburgh Pentlands Edinburgh Southern Edinburgh Western Linlithgow Midlothian North and Musselburgh

Lothian is an important area in Scotland that helps choose who represents people in the Scottish Parliament. It's one of eight special areas called electoral regions.

This region is located in the eastern part of central Scotland. It includes Edinburgh, which is the capital city of Scotland.

The Lothian region was created after some changes were made to the Scottish Parliament's boundaries. It mostly took the place of an older region also called Lothians.

What is the Scottish Parliament?

The Scottish Parliament is where laws are made for Scotland. It's like a big meeting place where people chosen by the public decide on important things for the country.

How are Members of the Scottish Parliament (MSPs) Chosen?

People in Lothian vote for 16 different representatives, called MSPs. These MSPs speak for the people of Lothian in the Scottish Parliament.

• Constituency MSPs: Nine of these MSPs are chosen by a system called "first past the post." This means the person who gets the most votes in a smaller area (called a constituency) wins.
• Regional MSPs: Seven other MSPs are chosen using a different system called "additional-member." This helps make sure that the number of MSPs from each political party in the region is fair, even if they didn't win a constituency.

Areas within Lothian

The Lothian electoral region is made up of several smaller areas. These areas are called constituencies. Each constituency elects its own MSP.

The region also covers parts of different local government areas. These include the City of Edinburgh, East Lothian, Midlothian, and West Lothian.

Who are the MSPs for Lothian?

The people who represent Lothian in the Scottish Parliament are called Members of the Scottish Parliament, or MSPs. They are elected to speak for the region.

Constituency MSPs for Lothian

Here are some of the MSPs who have represented different parts of Lothian over the years. They were elected directly by voters in their local areas.

Regional MSPs for Lothian

These MSPs are chosen to make sure all political parties are fairly represented in the Scottish Parliament. They are elected based on the total votes for parties across the whole Lothian region.

• ^[a] When Margo MacDonald, an Independent MSP, passed away, her seat stayed empty until the next election. This is because there was no rule to replace an independent politician.
• ^[b] Kezia Dugdale stepped down on July 15, 2019, and was replaced by Sarah Boyack.
• ^[c] After David McLetchie passed away, Cameron Buchanan took his place. Cameron was the next person on the list for the Scottish Conservatives in the Lothian region.
• ^[d] Andy Wightman was first a Scottish Green MSP. He then became an Independent politician in December 2020.

Recent Election Results

Elections are how people choose their MSPs. Here are the results from the most recent elections in Lothian.

2021 Scottish Parliament Election

This election took place in 2021. It shows which parties won seats in the Lothian region.

Constituency Results in 2021

These are the results for the individual constituencies within Lothian. The elected member is the person who won the most votes in that area.

Additional Member Results in 2021

These results show how many regional MSPs each party gained in the 2021 election.

2021 Scottish Parliament election: Lothian
List		Candidates	Votes	%	±
	SNP	Graham Campbell, Angus Robertson, Fiona Hyslop, Ben Macpherson, Catriona MacDonald, Sarah Masson, Greg McCarra, Alison Dickie, Alex Orr, Douglas Thomson, Andrew Ewen, Rob Connell	141,478	35.9	0.3
	Conservative	Miles Briggs, Sue Webber, Jeremy Balfour, Rebecca Fraser, Malcolm Offord, Scott Douglas, Gordon Lindhurst, Marie-Clair Munro, Graham Hutchison, Iain Whyte, Callum Laidlaw, Charles Kennedy, Damian Timson	78,595	19.9	3.0
	Labour	Daniel Johnson, Sarah Boyack, Foysol Choudhury, Maddy Kirkman, Nick Ward, Kirsteen Sullivan, Frederick Hessler, Stephen Curran	76,689	19.4	1.4
	Green	Alison Johnstone, Lorna Slater, Kate Nevens, Chas Booth, Steve Burgess, Alys Mumford, Emily Frood, Ben Parker, Elaine Taylor, Bill Wilson, Evelyn Weston, Alex Staniforth	49,984	12.7	2.1
	Liberal Democrats	Alex Cole-Hamilton, Fred Mackintosh, Jill Reilly, Rebecca Bell, Sally Pattie, Fraser Graham, Caron Lindsay, Bruce Wilson, Charles Dundas	28,433	7.2	1.6
	Alba	Kenny MacAskill, Alex Arthur, Christina Hendry, Irshad Ahmed	6,141	1.6	1.6
	All for Unity	Charlotte Morley, Parvinder Singh, Alan Hogg, Andy Macaulay, David Hamilton, Mike Knox	2,423	0.6	0.6
	Animal Welfare	Vivienne Moir, Gavin Ridley	2,392	0.6	0.6
	Scottish Family Party	Richard Lucas, Philip Holden, Norman Colville, Gareth Kirk, Amy Ireland	2,041	0.5	0.5
	Women's Equality	Emma Watt, David Renton, Lucy Hammond	1,124	0.3	0.9
	Freedom Alliance	Jon Pullman, Cara Wase, Patricia McCann	922	0.2	0.2
	Abolish the Scottish Parliament	John Leckie, David Nichol	828	0.2	0.2
	Reform UK	Derek Winton, Mev Brown, Iain Morse, Lesley MacDonald	810	0.2	0.2
	Libertarian	Tam Laird, Cameron Paterson	689	0.2	0.2
	Communist	Matthew Waddell	598	0.2	0.2
	Independent	Ashley Graczyk	430	0.1	0.1
	UKIP	Donald Mackay, John Mumford, Steve Hollis, Kenneth Lowry	420	0.1	1.7
	SDP	Alasdair Young, Neil Manson, Lawrence Edwards	227	0.1	0.1
	Renew	Heather Astbury, Anna Freemantle-Zee	102	0.0	0.0

2016 Scottish Parliament Election

Here's a summary of how many MSPs each party got in the 2016 election for Lothian.

• 6 Scottish National Party MSPs (all from constituencies)
• 4 Conservative MSPs (one from a constituency, three from the regional list)
• 3 Labour MSPs (one from a constituency, two from the regional list)
• 2 Green MSPs (both from the regional list)
• 1 Liberal Democrats MSP (from a constituency)

Constituency Results in 2016

These are the winners for each local area in the 2016 election.

Additional Member Results in 2016

These are the results for the regional MSPs in 2016.

2011 Scottish Parliament Election

Here's a summary of how many MSPs each party got in the 2011 election for Lothian.

• 8 Scottish National Party MSPs (all from constituencies)
• 4 Labour MSPs (one from a constituency, three from the regional list)
• 2 Conservative MSPs (both from the regional list)
• 1 Scottish Greens MSP (from the regional list)
• 1 Independent MSP (from the regional list)

Constituency Results in 2011

These are the winners for each local area in the 2011 election.

Additional Member Results in 2011

These are the results for the regional MSPs in 2011.