The politics of Dundee encompass the governance, elections, and political representation of Dundee City, one of the 32 council areas of Scotland. Political activity in the city is evident in the deliberations and decisions of Dundee City Council, in elections to the council, and in elections to the Scottish Parliament (Holyrood) and the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom (Westminster). Historically, Dundee was represented as part of the Perth Burghs constituency from 1708 to 1832, when the Dundee burgh constituency was created.
Local Government: Dundee City Council
Dundee City became a single-tier council in 1996 under the Local Government etc. (Scotland) Act 1994. The council area is the smallest of Scotland's 32 council areas. Council meetings take place in the City Chambers, opened in 1933, and the council executive is based in Dundee House. The civic head and chair of the council is known as the Lord Provost.
Composition and Control
The council consists of 29 councillors elected from eight multi-member wards. As of the most recent data:
| Party | Seats |
|---|---|
| Scottish National Party (SNP) | 15 |
| Scottish Labour | 9 |
| Liberal Democrats | 4 |
| Scottish Conservatives | 1 |
The SNP gained a majority on the council after the 2012 elections. The party lost its majority in 2017 but remained the largest party. After a 2019 by-election, the SNP briefly regained a majority before losing it again when a councillor resigned from the party. At the 2022 election, the SNP regained their majority, reaching 15 seats. The council has a history of Labour Party domination; George Galloway was leader for a time and was responsible for organising Dundee's twinning with the Palestinian city of Nablus.
Scottish Parliament
For elections to the Scottish Parliament, the city area is divided into two constituencies, both within the North East Scotland electoral region:
- Dundee City East — represented by Shona Robison (SNP)
- Dundee City West — represented by Joe FitzPatrick (SNP)
Boundaries for these constituencies date from 1999, when the Scottish Parliament was created.
Parliament of the United Kingdom
For elections to the House of Commons, the city area is divided into two constituencies that also include portions of the Angus council area:
- Dundee East — represented by Stewart Hosie (SNP)
- Dundee Central — represented by Chris Law (SNP)
Current boundaries date from 2005. Prior to the 2005 general election, the constituencies had the same boundaries as the Scottish Parliament constituencies.
2014 Independence Referendum
Dundee returned the highest proportion of "Yes" votes of any area in Scotland in the 2014 Scottish independence referendum, with 53,620 votes in favour (57.3%) to 39,880 against (42.7%). It was among only four local authority areas that backed independence. In the run-up to the referendum, First Minister Alex Salmond referred to Dundee as "Scotland's Yes city."
European Parliament
Prior to the United Kingdom's withdrawal from the European Union, Dundee was within the Scotland constituency for elections to the European Parliament, which covered all 32 council areas of Scotland.
