The ward was a Scottish National Party (SNP) stronghold as the part held half the seats between 2007 and 2017.

The ward was created following the Fourth Statutory Reviews of Electoral Arrangements ahead of the 2007 Scottish local elections.

As a result of the Local Governance (Scotland) Act 2004, local elections in Scotland would use the single transferable vote electoral system from 2007 onwards so North Coast and Cumbraes was formed from an amalgamation of several previous first-past-the-post wards.

[1] North Coast and Cumbraes was the only ward in the council area unaffected following the Fifth Statutory Reviews of Electoral Arrangements ahead of the 2017 Scottish local elections.

The review coincided with the introduction of the Scottish Elections (Reform) Act 2020 which allowed for the creation of five-member wards.