Elections to Purbeck District Council were held on 2 May 2002. One third of the council was up for election and the Conservative Party stayed in overall control of the council.
After the election, the composition of the council was
| Party | Seats | Gains | Losses | Net gain/loss | Seats % | Votes % | Votes | +/− | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | 4 | 0 | 50.0 | 30.5 | 2,344 | ||||
| Independent | 3 | 0 | 37.5 | 21.2 | 1,627 | ||||
| Liberal Democrats | 1 | 0 | 12.5 | 35.9 | 2,757 | ||||
| Labour | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12.5 | 962 | ||||
One Independent candidate was unopposed.
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Independent | Peter Wharf | unopposed | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Nicholas Cake | 329 | 51.2 | ||
| Liberal Democrats | Mark Howlett | 200 | 31.1 | ||
| Labour | Robert Huskinson | 114 | 17.7 | ||
| Majority | 129 | 20.1 | |||
| Turnout | 643 | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Michael Lovell | 393 | 53.1 | ||
| Liberal Democrats | William Wilson | 304 | 41.1 | ||
| Labour | Leigh van de Zande | 43 | 5.8 | ||
| Majority | 89 | 12.0 | |||
| Turnout | 740 | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Independent | Angus McDonald | 652 | 53.1 | ||
| Liberal Democrats | Royston Fox | 575 | 46.9 | ||
| Majority | 77 | 6.2 | |||
| Turnout | 1,227 | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Independent | Elizabeth Rudd | 279 | 69.9 | ||
| Labour | Jon Davey | 120 | 30.1 | ||
| Majority | 159 | 39.8 | |||
| Turnout | 399 | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Gary Suttle | 717 | 42.5 | ||
| Labour | Cherry Bartlett | 566 | 33.5 | ||
| Liberal Democrats | Hilary O'Donocan | 406 | 24.0 | ||
| Majority | 151 | 9.0 | |||
| Turnout | 1,689 | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liberal Democrats | David Budd | 1,003 | 42.5 | ||
| Independent | Leslie Burns | 696 | 29.5 | ||
| Conservative | Jane Patterson | 544 | 23.0 | ||
| Labour | Audrey Tighe | 119 | 5.0 | ||
| Majority | 307 | 13.0 | |||
| Turnout | 2,362 | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Keith Barnes | 361 | 57.3 | ||
| Liberal Democrats | Eric Osmond | 269 | 42.7 | ||
| Majority | 92 | 14.6 | |||
| Turnout | 630 | ||||
