Xiaohongshu
Last Thursday the city voted in local elections across 32 London borough councils. The previous local elections took place in 2022, where the Labour Party won a majority in 21 out of 32 boroughs. Things look very different this time round, with Labour now having the majority in only 9 out of 32 boroughs, and another nine London boroughs having no majority at all.
The Green Party and Reform UK had notable wins, with the Greens winning a majority in three boroughs; Hackney, Lewisham, and Waltham Forest. Reform won a majority in the borough of Havering.
What are local elections?
The people elected in local council elections are known as local councillors, and they’re elected for a four-year term.
Your local council is responsible for a lot of public frontline services like public transport, housing, local libraries, rubbish collection and recycling, and maintaining public parks.
Each borough is split into a ward, and residents vote for who they want representing their ward. Usually there are two to three councillors are elected per ward, but this can vary.
Who can vote?
Everyone over the age of 18 who is either a British or Irish citizen, or a qualifying EU or Commonwealth citizen.
Let’s take a closer look at the results.
Camden
The Bloomsbury campus is based in the London Borough of Camden.
A total of 55 seats were up for election. In the previous elections in 2022, Labour won a majority, which it has held onto this time round despite losing 14 seats. The Green Party, which has seen a significant increase in numbers across London, gained 10 seats.
Winner: Labour (hold)
- Labour: 30 (-14 councillors)
- Green: 11 (+10)
- Liberal Democrats: 10 (+4)
- Conservatives: 3 (no change)
- Independents: 1 (no change)
Newham
UCL East is based in the London Borough of Newham. 66 seats were up for election, with Labour previously having the majority. After Thursday’s results, things look very different, with Labour losing a staggering 30 councillors, and Independent and Green candidates making large gains, leaving the borough with no overall majority.
Winner: No overall control (Labour loss)
- Labour: 26 (-30)
- Independents: 24 (+17)
- Green: 16 (+13)
Newham also had elections to choose a new mayor who will lead the borough for the next 4 years, and Forhad Hussain of the Labour Party was elected.
Want to create change in your local area?
If you’re concerned about something in your local area, or just want to find out more, you can contact your local councillor. You can find their details on the council website or pages like Write to Them. You can also attend council meetings to find out what’s being done in your area.
In the meantime, we’ll continue to work with local council to raise issues that are important to you and other students.