These are all the UK councils that have requested delays to local elections for 2026

The list of councils requesting the postponement of local elections has been announced.

Twenty-nine councils requested the postponement of local elections to be held in May. Of these, 21 are led by the Labor Party, four are Conservative, two are Liberal, one is Green and one is Independent.

It comes as Labor plans to scrap two-tier authorities and merge them into single unitary councils by 2028 are being rolled out.

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Councils said a lack of resources to deliver local government reorganization (LGR) and the cost of holding elections had led to the need for delays.

63 councils have been offered a postponement of May elections by the government due to hurdles surrounding LGR plans.

According to analysis by Sky News, of the 63 councils approached by Sky News, 29 said they would ask for a postponement, 33 said they would not, and one of them could not agree on the issue.

Councils requesting postponement:

The delays have been criticized by opposition parties, with the Conservative Party’s shadow local government secretary, James Cleverly, accusing Labor of being “scared of voters” in the face of devastating approval rates.

“We are clear that these elections must be held. Ministers must treat voters with respect rather than belittle them, stop undermining our democratic system and allow the people of this country to make their own decisions,” he added.

The Liberal Democrats called for changes to the law so that “ministers cannot delay elections with the stroke of a pen”, while party leader Sir Ed Davey said: “Both Labor and the Conservatives are afraid of voters and allow councilors to serve up to seven years without a democratic term.”

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Nigel Farage took the opportunity to express his anger at the delays as Reform UK could potentially destroy Labor in some areas.

On Thursday, he launched plans for a judicial review in a bid to go ahead with the election and accused communities secretary Steve Reed of “abuse of power”.

“We will use all means, especially judicial review,” he said.

Election Commission chairman Vijay Rangarajan said the move has led to “unprecedented” uncertainty and could harm public confidence.

“We are disappointed in both the timing and content of the statement. Scheduled elections should, as a rule, be held as planned and postponed only in exceptional cases,” he said.

Mr Rangarajan added: “In principle, we do not consider that capacity constraints are a legitimate reason to delay the long-planned elections.

“Extending existing powers risks affecting the legitimacy of local decision-making and undermining public trust.

“There is a clear conflict of interest in asking existing councils to decide how long it will take for them to be accountable to voters.”