Scottish Conservative leader, Ruth Davidson, has pledged to “win more council seats than ever before” after joining Aberdeenshire by-election candidates yesterday.
Ms Davidson visited the local branch of her party to speak at a conference in Cults before meeting candidate Colin Clark in Inverurie.
The official leader of the opposition at Holyrood said she regarded the upcoming by-elections, and the wider local government elections in May next year, as an opportunity to wrest back control from the SNP.
In both the Inverurie and Banff and District by-elections which will be held on Thursday, the Conservative and SNP candidates are the favourites.
Ms Davidson said: “It’s in a sense, certainly in Inverurie, a battle between Conservative and SNP. One of the two of them is going to win. Although it’s a one, two, three, four vote I think it’s between those two.
“We’re looking to get second and third preference votes from people who clearly don’t support the SNP and want to stand against a second referendum and stand up for their country.”
The Tory leader insisted the by-elections were “symbolic” of the battle between the two parties and maintained she had challenged her team to maintain momentum going into May’s council elections.
She added: “I am ambitious for this party – I set high targets and they have never let me down.
“I’ve set my team a target of having more councillors than we’ve ever had before under devolution.”
The council ward vacancy in Inverurie opened up when former authority co-leader Martin Kitts-Hayes was forced to resign in the wake of this summer’s Lego-gate scandal.
Mr Clark is standing against Neil Baillie, SNP, Alison Auld, Liberal Democrat, and Sarah Flavell, Labour.
The Banff and District seat formerly held by SNP member, Ian Gray, is being contested following Mr Gray’s death in August.
The candidates are Alistair Mason, Liberal Democrat, Glen Reynolds, SNP, and Iain Taylor, Conservative.
