The records broken in historic local elections that rocked Labour as Reform surges
This week’s local elections in England, Scotland and Wales have led to a shocking shift in the political landscape; It overturned the decades-long majorities of the traditional parties and gave rise to new forces.
The results mark a historic moment when established power bases collapsed and new records were set, especially for the Reform and Green Party.
Labor in particular has faced significant setbacks in its traditional heartlands. Councils in Gateshead, Sunderland and Wakefield, which have been under continuous Labor control since their formation in 1973, saw Reform gain enough seats to take full control.
Similarly, Sandwell, a Labor stronghold since 1979, saw Reform become the new majority party. Tameside, which has had an unbroken Labor majority for 47 years, also changed course, with Reform gaining enough seats to deprive Labor of a majority and deprive the council of overall control for a single group.
Even in Knowsley, where Labor has held a majority since 1973, its seat share has fallen to a historic low of 53 per cent due to gains by Reform and independents.
The Conservative Party also suffered significant losses. In Essex, the Conservatives lost their majority for the first time since 2001, while Reform made enough gains to take overall control.
Hampshire witnessed a similar outcome; The Conservatives again lost their majority to Reform for the first time since 1997, but neither party maintained overall control there.
Wales has witnessed a truly historic realignment. Plaid Cymru emerged as the largest party in the Senedd for the first time, while both the Greens and Reform took their first seats in the devolved parliament.
This election marked the worst performance in Senedd history for both Labor and the Conservatives, and brought an abrupt end to Labour’s more than century-long dominance of Welsh politics, which included being the largest party at every general election since 1922 and holding the most Senedd seats since 1999.
In Scotland, both Labor and the Conservatives recorded their lowest ever number of members in the Scottish Parliament; Labor secured 17 seats (down from the previous low of 22 in 2021) and the Conservatives 12 seats (down from 15 in 2011).
In contrast, the Green Party set a new record by winning 15 seats in 2021, surpassing its previous high of eight.
The Scottish National Party (SNP) continued its strong performance, winning the most seats for the fifth election in a row and remaining the largest group in parliament for the 19th year.
London also reflected these changing dynamics. The Green Party took control of Hackney and Waltham Forest councils for the first time and secured the first directly elected local mayors in Hackney and Lewisham, unseating long-serving Labor incumbents.
The reform also made progress, gaining a majority in Havering. Labor lost overall control of Haringey and Newham councils, where it had held a majority since 1971.
Meanwhile, the Liberal Democrats achieved a historic sweep in Richmond-upon-Thames, winning all 54 seats and gaining new authority in both East Surrey and West Surrey.
