British Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s Labour Party is showing big losses in the local elections over hard-right Reform UK of Nigel Farage. In what is being seen as an unofficial referendum by the Brits on Starmer’s Labour party, the votes are signalling a declining popularity as Farage’s Reform UK is winning hundreds of local council seats in working-class regions of England’s North, such as Hartlepool, which was once a Labour stronghold.
The Votes are still left to be counted for the contests of the semi-autonomous parliaments in Scotland and Wales. In his first comments since losing hundreds of seats, the British premier said that the results overnight have “hurt” and are “very tough” but that it hasn’t weakened his resolve.
Starmer said, “Tough days like this don’t weaken my resolve to deliver the change that I promised; they strengthen my resolve to do so.” He admitted there is “no sugarcoating this.” British PM continued, that his party has lost “brilliant Labour representatives across the country” and that “these are people who put so much into their communities, so much into our party. And that hurts, and it should hurt, and I take responsibility.”
The UK’s Labour Party has conceded nine councils and more than 250 seats, and despite major losses in traditionally Labour turfs, Starmer has insisted that he isn’t walking away.
“The voters have sent a message about the pace of change, how they want their lives and those elected to meet those challenges, and I’m not going to walk away from those challenges and plunge the country into chaos,” Starmer asserted. “This has been going on for a very, very long time… But we haven’t done enough to convince people that things could improve, that their lives can get better, that hope.”
Who Won the Local Election?
The early results are being defined by a massive surge for Reform UK, followed by the Liberal Democrats.
As the counting is underway, Nigel Farage’s party has secured a majority on several councils, after securing at least 28 of the 55 seats. At the Southampton city council, where 17 out of the 51 seats were up for grabs, no party secured a majority.
Overall, 5,000 council seats are up for grabs across 136 councils, with six mayoral contests also being decided. Voters are also polling for devolved parliaments in Scotland, known as Holyrood, as well as in Wales, known as the Senedd. Labour is expected to lose ground in Wales, where it was the biggest party since devolution.
It is also losing ground in Scotland to the national parties.
Starmer’s party has been expected to lose up to 1,850 councillors, including in the northern heartlands, as the senior figures dubbed the race “tough.”
Reform took control of the first council, gaining Newcastle-under-Lyme from Labour in what was seen as the “historic shift” in British politics. Farage said that his party was “scoring stunning percentages in the traditional old Labour areas,” while Starmer’s party lost strongholds like Hull.
Political scientist John Curtice appeared on the BBC, declaring that Reform UK “was clearly winning” in early counts. Labour losses may be around 1,500 seats or lower, but it is a tipping point to unseat Starmer.
Reform UK won Havering, located on the eastern border of Greater London, taking 20 wards, giving the party its first London Council, while the Conservatives won Westminster back from the Labour Party, becoming the largest party in Wandsworth.
Meanwhile, the Greens were struggling to convert votes into seats, getting third place. The Liberal Democrats, meanwhile, dominated the “Blue Wall” in regions such as Sutton and Eastleigh, maintaining comfortable majorities.
What Time Will Local Election Results Come In?
The election results for the locals are being announced in waves, as the counting is underway in the local councils and the devolved nations. Some results will be announced on Friday between 1 am and 7 am. Roughly a third of English council results will be announced overnight, with bulk results expected at breakfast.
All of the mayoral elections are being counted on May 8, with Hackey and Newham expected to be declared at 1 pm, while Waford will be declared at 2 pm, Lewisham at 3 pm, Croydon at 4 pm, and Tower Hamlets at possibly 6 pm. Welsh and Scottish parliaments will be counted on the same day. The majority of the count is yet to begin, including results from Scotland and Wales.
When Are the Local Election Results Expected?
Polls have closed in England, Scotland and Wales for local, mayoral and parliamentary elections, and the first results may be announced within hours. More than 30 million people voted in the elections that are being seen as the test for the British PM Keir Starmer’s premiership. The elections could potentially change the political landscape in the UK.
Early predictions suggest that Reform UK and the Green party are expected to make significant gains, while Liberal Democrats could turn swathes of local government yellow, in a surge to a total number of councillors.
High voter turnout and recounts could delay results slightly, with late results by Saturday, May 8.
