Local election results live: Polls close across UK in major test of Starmer’s leadership

Labor deputy leader Lucy Powell admitted local elections were “tough” for Sir Keir Starmer’s ruling party.

He said: “Labour is running positive, local campaigns across the country, focusing on our delivery records, bringing communities together and tackling the people’s number one priority: reducing the cost of living. “The whole party and the Government are so proud of our hard-working Labor candidates who are serving their local communities and standing for election.

“These elections took place in a challenging and difficult context. After more than a decade of Britain being held back, working people up and down the country rightly want to see the whole of the UK firing on all cylinders in their interests. Labor has set out to deliver on that promise, and we are determined to make sure that happens for everyone, everywhere.

“Nigel Farage’s false promises and toxic policies will not deliver the change people want to see. Zack Polanski has proven this week that he is unfit for office and has the wrong answers to the problems facing our country.

“Labour will continue to work every day to put our values ​​into action and deliver the fairer future people want to see – by reducing the cost of living, fixing our NHS, taking on vested interests and retooling the country to create a better Britain, built for everyone.”

The polls have officially closed for the critical elections to be held in May across the country.

Votes were cast for thousands of seats in 136 local authorities in England.

Elections were also held for the Welsh and Scottish parliaments.

Voting will end in less than 20 minutes at polling stations across the country.

Everyone who wants to vote must line up before 22:00 to vote.

Ballots in Scotland and Wales will be counted during daylight hours on Friday, May 8, with the first results expected to be published in the early afternoon and final statements in the evening.

Of the 136 local authorities holding elections in England, 46 will count and declare them throughout the night, and the results are expected to be between 01.00 and 06.00 on May 8.

The majority of remaining officials will not begin counting until 9 a.m. on May 8, and will likely begin announcing results in the late morning and continue into the evening.

All six mayoral results in England will be announced on the afternoon of 8 May.

Four local authorities – Bradford, Croydon, Lewisham and Tower Hamlets – are holding the count on Saturday, May 9, with full results expected to be announced by the evening.

Ed Miliband has suggested Sir Keir Starmer set a timetable for the prime minister’s departure from No 10. Times reports.

Quoting two sources familiar with the debate, Times The former Labor leader reportedly floated the proposal during a private meeting with Sir Keir about two weeks ago, saying it would prevent Labour’s potential civil war.

While voters go to the polls to vote in critical local elections, political parties are fighting against each other.

My colleague Athena Stavrou examines what political parties promise voters:

Voters must cast their votes by 22:00 before the polls close.

Voters will be able to vote as long as they line up before this time.

While most ballot boxes will be stored until Friday morning, vote counting will begin in some local authorities in England.

In England, Labor is defending just over half of the contested council seats; This reflects the party’s current strength in London and the Metropolitan boroughs, with just over a quarter made up of Conservative defences.

This is a different scenario to last year’s local elections, when the Conservative Party defended the largest number of council seats, as most of the contests were for county councils where the party dominated.

Other parties advocate a smaller share of seats.

The Liberal Democrats defend around 700 people, the Greens around 200, while Reform defends 80; This is mostly due to recent midterm election victories or defections.

Boundary changes introduced at this year’s Scottish Parliament elections mean that some seats remain unchanged, while others are lost, renamed, reshaped or completely new; but there will still be 129 seats in Parliament.

At the previous election in 2021, the SNP won 64 seats, one short of the number needed for an overall majority, while the Conservatives won 31, Labor 22, the Greens eight and the Liberal Democrats four.

In Wales, the increase in the number of Senedd seats from 60 to 96, the addition of new constituencies and the change in the voting system means that it will not be possible to directly compare the pre-election positions of the parties with those on election day.

In the previous election in 2021, when the Senedd comprised 60 seats, Labor won 30 seats; this number was one less than the overall majority; The Tories won 16 seats, Plaid Cymru 13 and the Liberal Democrats one.