Before (end of 1985) (36 seats, Elections Centre)
Conservative 24 · SDP-Liberal Alliance 12 · Other 0 · Labour 0
After (end of 1986) (36 seats, Elections Centre)
Conservative 22 · SDP-Liberal Alliance 14 · Labour 0 · Other 0
Ward results
Broadwater1 seat
| A. Dockerty | Lib/Sdp | 1,441 |
| S. Kemp | Conservative | 819 |
| B. Wright | Labour | 214 |
Castle2 seats
| V. Harvey | Lib/Sdp | 1,041 |
| L. Turner | Lib/Sdp | 1,018 |
| E. Popplestone | Conservative | 787 |
| J. Finlay | Conservative | 766 |
| J. Hammond | Labour | 329 |
| T. Jones | Labour | 254 |
Central1 seat
| R. Lipscombe | Lib/Sdp | 922 |
| A. Macmillan | Conservative | 713 |
| H. King | Labour | 200 |
Durrington1 seat
| C. Moore | Lib/Sdp | 1,469 |
| R. Smart | Conservative | 935 |
| J. Duggan | Labour | 227 |
Gaisford1 seat
| C. Golds | Lib/Sdp | 1,182 |
| S. Wilton | Conservative | 903 |
| S. Hurcombe | Labour | 274 |
Goring1 seat
| M. Clinch | Conservative | 1,655 |
| M. Clayden | Lib/Sdp | 1,039 |
| P. Taylor | Labour | 171 |
Heene1 seat
| G. Collinson | Conservative | 1,521 |
| S. Kift | Lib/Sdp | 709 |
| S. Deen | Labour | 200 |
Marine1 seat
| E. McDonald | Conservative | 1,545 |
| T. Chapman | Lib/Sdp | 894 |
| J. Deen | Labour | 181 |
Offington1 seat
| D. Peters | Conservative | 1,404 |
| G. Meredith | Lib/Sdp | 752 |
| D. Broad | Labour | 137 |
Salvington1 seat · turnout 40.7%
| G. Lissenburg | Conservative | 1,591 ✓ |
| J. Crabtree | SDP-Liberal Alliance | 923 |
| Y. Griffiths | Labour | 216 |
Tarring1 seat
| W. Phillips | Lib/Sdp | 1,135 |
| E. Ilett | Conservative | 1,100 |
| S. Peaty | Labour | 279 |
