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Reform Wins Big in British Local Elections, Reshaping the U.K. Right

Labour and the Tories both suffered huge blows. Is a political realignment underway?

Reem Ibrahim | 5.8.2026 7:00 PM

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On Thursday, almost half of the United Kingdom was given the opportunity to vote in local elections. Usually, little attention is paid to local elections, whose winners are largely responsible for planning applications and trash collection. But British politics is far from usual at the moment.

Voters across England went to the polls to elect over 5,000 councillors in 136 local authorities. At the same time, six directly elected mayors will be chosen, as well as the Scottish and Welsh devolved parliaments. While these election results do not directly affect the British government, they are widely seen as a key test for all political parties and the biggest test for Prime Minister Keir Starmer since the 2024 parliamentary elections. 

With the majority of the local council results in, it is clear that Starmer's Labour Party has had its support implode. At the time of writing, the party has lost over 900 council seats and lost control of almost 30 councils, including Westminster and Essex. The Conservative Party has also been dealt a blow, losing control of six councils and over 400 seats.

Nigel Farage's Reform U.K.........

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