Elections for Oxford City Council were held on Thursday 4 May 2006. As Oxford City Council is elected by halves, one seat in each of the 24 wards was up for election. The exception was St Clement's, where both seats were up for election as a by-election for the other seat was held on the same day. Therefore, 25 of the 48 seats on the Council were up for election. Overall turnout was 35.8%, down from 37.6% in 2004. The lowest turnout (24.9%) was in Carfax ward and the highest (49.6%) in Marston.
Note: two Independents stood in 2006, compared with three in 2004.
The total number of seats on the Council after the election was:
The Oxford University Conservative Association president-elect Charlie Steel was the Conservative candidate in the Holywell ward. His candidacy was embroiled in controversy in late April when some of his nominators alleged that they had not signed his nomination forms, meaning their signatures had been forged. A Police investigation was launched and Steel did not resign from his OUCA position.
The full list of Steel's supposed nominators were a selection of students of the University of Oxford, some of whom were officers of the Oxford University Conservative Association (OUCA). A number of those officers subsequently complained to Oxford City Council that they had not signed the papers.[1] [2] [3]
Because both seats were up for election each voter had two votes (i.e. plurality-at-large voting). Turnout has been estimated by halving the number of votes cast.