John Alexander (councillor)

John Alexander is a Scottish National Party (SNP) councillor and the current Leader of Dundee City Council.[1]


John Alexander
Leader of Dundee City Council
Assumed office
22 May 2017
Preceded byKen Guild
Councillor for Strathmartine (Ward 1)
Assumed office
3 May 2012
Leader of SNP Group
Assumed office
April 2017
Preceded byKen Guild
Personal details
BornJune 1988
Dundee, Scotland
NationalityScottish
Political partyScottish National Party
Spouse(s)Sarah Alexander (2014)
Children2
Alma materUniversity of Dundee

John Alexander was first elected to the Strathmartine Ward (Ward 1) in the 2012 Scottish council election with 1245 1st preference votes,[2] becoming Dundee's youngest ever serving councillor at 23 years old.

In the 2017 election, he was re-elected with an increase in 1st preference votes of 57%.[3] Alexander subsequently became Leader of Dundee City Council after striking a deal to form an administration with veteran councillor, Ian Borthwick.[4]

Education

Alexander was educated at St Saviour's Roman Catholic High School in Dundee (2000 - 2006) - although the school has since closed.

He attended the University of Dundee, initially studying Law (Scots) LL.B and latterly graduating with a Master of Arts in Politics & International Relations.

Early career

Following his election in 2012, Alexander held the role of Depute Convener of Housing within the majority SNP Council Administration. He was Depute to the then Convener of the Department, Councillor Jimmy Black.

Following Councillor Black's resignation from the post in 2013, Alexander assumed the role of Convener of the Housing Department in 2013, a post which he held until it was merged with the Environment Department in 2016.

In March 2016, Alexander became the first Convener of the newly created Neighbourhood Services Committee which was formed following the amalgamation of the Housing Department, Environment Department and Communities Section. He held this post until his appointment as Leader of Dundee City Council in May 2017.

Awards & Acknowledgment

Alexander won the 'SNP Councillor of the Year' category at the inaugural SNP Independence Magazine Awards 2018.[5]

At the Herald Scottish Politician of the Year Awards 2018, Alexander won the 'Local Politician of the Year' category.[6]

In November 2019, Alexander was named 'Leader of the Year' by Local Government Information Unit, an influential think tank, at its annual Councillor Awards.[7]


References

  1. "VIDEO: New council leader reveals the Dundee team he supports in Tele Q&A - Evening Telegraph". Evening Telegraph. Retrieved 4 June 2017.
  2. "Dundee City Council Results 2012" (PDF).
  3. fiona.christison (20 December 2016). "City Council 2017 Election Results". www.dundeecity.gov.uk. Retrieved 4 June 2017.
  4. "SNP to form administration with Independent on Dundee City Council". BBC News. 12 May 2017. Retrieved 4 June 2017.
  5. "Independence Mag on Twitter". Twitter. Retrieved 23 November 2018.
  6. "Scotland's Politician of the Year Named". Capital Scotland. Retrieved 23 November 2018.
  7. "Dundee City Council's John Alexander named leader of the year". Evening Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 30 November 2019.
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