| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
All 27 county councils, 7 out of 55 unitary authorities, 1 out of 22 Welsh principal councils, 1 sui generis authority, and 2 directly elected mayors | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Map showing council control (left) and largest party by ward or division (right) following the election. No election |
The 2013 United Kingdom local elections took place on Thursday 2 May 2013. [1] Elections were held in 35 English councils: all 27 non-metropolitan county councils and eight unitary authorities, and in one Welsh unitary authority. Direct mayoral elections took place in Doncaster and North Tyneside. These elections last took place on the 4 June 2009 at the same time as the 2009 European Parliament Elections, except for County Durham, Northumberland and the Anglesey where elections last took place in 2008.
The BBC's projected national vote share (PNV) put Labour on 29%, the Conservatives on 25%, UKIP on 23% and the Liberal Democrats on 14%. [2] Elections analysts Rallings and Thrasher estimated 29% for Labour, 26% for the Conservatives, 22% for UKIP and 13% for the Liberal Democrats. [3]
On the same day a parliamentary by-election took place in the North East constituency of South Shields following the departure of David Miliband, with the Labour Party retaining the seat.
All registered electors (British, Irish, Commonwealth and European Union citizens) aged 18 or over were entitled to vote in the local elections. Those temporarily away from their ordinary address (for example, away working, on holiday, in student accommodation or in hospital) were also entitled to vote in the local elections, [4] as were those who had moved abroad and registered as overseas electors. [5] [6]
The UK Independence Party and the Green Party stood record numbers of candidates. [7]
Party | Councils | Councillors | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Number | Change | Number | Change | ||
Conservative | 18 | 10 | 1,116 | 335 | |
Labour | 3 | 3 | 538 | 291 | |
Liberal Democrats | 0 | 352 | 124 | ||
UKIP | 0 | 147 | 139 | ||
Green | 0 | 22 | 5 | ||
Plaid Cymru | 0 | 12 | 6 | ||
Residents | 0 | 12 | 2 | ||
Mebyon Kernow | 0 | 4 | 1 | ||
Liberal | 0 | 3 | 1 | ||
Health Concern | 0 | 2 | |||
BNP | 0 | 0 | 3 | ||
Independent/Other | 0 | 166 | 24 | ||
No overall control | 14 | 9 | — | — |
Labour and UKIP made substantial gains, but the Conservatives won the most councillors and retained control of most councils. The BBC published projected national vote shares, adjusting for which regions are holding local elections and extrapolating to the national situation. These were Labour 29%, Conservatives 25%, UKIP 23% and the Liberal Democrats 14%. This is the lowest figure for the Conservatives since 1982 and the lowest ever figure for the Liberal Democrats. It is also the first time that none of the three main parties in the Commons has scored 30% or more. [8] Rallings & Thrasher separately calculated a projected national vote share of Labour 29%, Conservatives 26%, UKIP 22% and the Liberal Democrats 13%. [9]
The actual votes received were Conservative 34.3%, Labour 21.1%, UKIP 19.9%, Lib Dem 13.8% and Green 3.5%. [10]
Overall, in England, the Conservatives saw 1116 councillors elected (down 335), Labour 538 (up 291), the Liberal Democrats 352 (down 124), independents 165 (up 24), UKIP 147 (up 139), the Greens 22 (up 5), Residents Associations 12 (up 2), Mebyon Kernow 4 (up 1), the Liberal Party 3 (up 1) and Independent Community and Health Concern 2 (no change). The BNP won no seats (down 3). [11]
All 27 county councils for areas with a two-tier structure of local governance had all of their seats up for election. These were first-past-the-post elections in a mixture of single-member and multi-member electoral divisions.
†The Conservatives won control of the council in the 2009 elections but lost their majority during its term.
Seven single-tier unitary authorities held elections. Seven of these had all of their seats up for election, whilst one, Bristol, elected a third of its seats. These are first-past-the-post elections in a mixture of single-member and multi-member wards.
Council | Proportion up for election | Previous control | Result | Details | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Bristol | 1/3 | No overall control | No overall control | Details | ||
Cornwall | All | No overall control | No overall control [13] (Lib Dem/Independent Coalition) | Details | ||
Durham | All | Labour | Labour | Details | ||
Isle of Wight | All | Conservative | No overall control (Island Independents Minority) | Details | ||
Northumberland | All | No overall control | No overall control (Labour Minority) | Details | ||
Shropshire | All | Conservative | Conservative | Details | ||
Wiltshire | All | Conservative | Conservative | Details |
The Council of the Isles of Scilly was created by the Local Government Act 1888, meaning they lie outside the classifications of authorities used in the rest of England.
Council | Proportion up for election | Previous control | Result | Details | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Isles of Scilly | All | Independent | Independent hold | Details |
Two elections for directly elected mayors were held, who act as council leader. These are elected using the Supplementary Vote system. Hartlepool's referendum in November 2012 resulted in the post being abolished from May 2013. [14]
Local Authority | Incumbent Mayor | Result | Details | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Doncaster | Peter Davies (Independent) [15] | Ros Jones (Labour) | Details | ||
North Tyneside | Linda Arkley (Conservative) | Norma Redfearn (Labour) | Details |
In Wales, a single council, the Isle of Anglesey, was up for election. This election was postponed in 2012, when all other Welsh councils were elected, in order to allow an electoral review to take place for the council. [16]
Council | Previous control | Result | Details | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Isle of Anglesey | No overall control | No overall control | Details |
In the context of local authorities in the United Kingdom, no overall control is a situation in which no single political group achieves a majority of seats, analogous to a hung parliament. Of the 248 councils who had members up for election in the 2019 local elections, 73 resulted in a NOC administration. In the 2021 local elections, 14 resulted in no overall control. The term can still be used for several other countries, such as for two local councils of Malta and the General Assembly of Budapest in Hungary.
The 2006 United Kingdom local elections were held on Thursday 4 May 2006.
Somerset Council, known until 1 April 2023 as Somerset County Council, is the unitary authority which governs the district of Somerset, which occupies the southern part of the ceremonial county of the same name in the South West of England. The council has been controlled by the Liberal Democrats since the 2022 local elections, and its headquarters is County Hall in Taunton.
Cornwall is administered as a county of South West England whose politics are influenced by a number of issues that make it distinct from the general political scene in the wider United Kingdom, and the political trends of neighbouring counties. Its position on the geographical periphery of the island of Great Britain is also a factor.
An election to Cumbria County Council took place on 2 May 2009 as part of the 2009 United Kingdom local elections. All 84 councillors were elected from various electoral divisions, which returned one or two county councillors each by first-past-the-post voting for a four-year term of office. They coincided with an election for the European Parliament. All 84 seats in the Council were up for election, and a total of 301 candidates stood. The total number of people registered to vote was 392,931. Prior to the election local Conservatives were leading a coalition with the Liberal Democrats with the Labour party as the council's official opposition.
The Cornwall Council election, 2009, was an election for all 123 seats on the council. Cornwall Council is a unitary authority that covers the majority of the ceremonial county of Cornwall, with the exception of the Isles of Scilly which have an independent local authority. The elections took place concurrently with other local elections across England and Wales as well as the UK component of the elections to the European Parliament. Cornwall had seen its district and county councils abolished, replaced by a single 123-member Cornish unitary authority, for which councillors were elected for a full term.
The 2011 United Kingdom local elections was held on Thursday May 5. In England, direct elections were held in all 36 Metropolitan boroughs, 194 Second-tier district authorities, 49 unitary authorities and various mayoral posts, meaning local elections took place in all parts of England with the exception of seven unitary authorities, and seven districts and boroughs. For the majority of English districts and the 25 unitary authorities that are elected "all out" these were the first elections since 2007. In Northern Ireland, there were elections to all 26 local councils. Elections also took place to most English parish councils.
The 2012 United Kingdom local elections were held across England, Scotland and Wales on 3 May 2012. Elections were held in 128 English local authorities, all 32 Scottish local authorities and 21 of the 22 Welsh unitary authorities, alongside three mayoral elections including the London mayoralty and the London Assembly. Referendums were also held in 11 English cities to determine whether or not to introduce directly elected mayors.
The 2012 North East Lincolnshire Council election took place on 3 May 2012 to elect members of North East Lincolnshire Council in England. This was on the same day as other 2012 United Kingdom local elections.
The 2014 United Kingdom local elections were held on 22 May 2014. Usually these elections are held on the first Thursday in May but were postponed to coincide with the 2014 European Parliament Elections. Direct elections were held for all 32 London boroughs, all 36 metropolitan boroughs, 74 district/borough councils, 19 unitary authorities and various mayoral posts in England and elections to the new councils in Northern Ireland.
An election to Lincolnshire County Council took place on 2 May 2013 as part of the 2013 United Kingdom local elections. 77 electoral divisions returned one county councillor each by first-past-the-post voting for a four-year term of office. The electoral divisions were the same as those used at the previous election in 2009. No elections were held in North Lincolnshire or North East Lincolnshire, which are unitary authorities outside the area covered by the County Council.
Elections to Gloucestershire County Council took place on 2 May 2013 as part of the 2013 United Kingdom local elections. 53 electoral divisions elected one county councillor each by first-past-the-post voting for a four-year term of office. No elections were held in South Gloucestershire, which is a unitary authority outside the area covered by the County Council.
An election to Staffordshire County Council took place on 2 May 2013 as part of the 2013 United Kingdom local elections. 62 electoral divisions returned one county councillor each by first-past-the-post voting for a four-year term of office. Following a boundary review, new electoral division boundaries were established for this election. No elections were held in Stoke-on-Trent, which is a unitary authority outside the area covered by the County Council. The council continues to be administered on the Leader and Cabinet model.
The 2014 North East Lincolnshire Council election took place on 22 May 2014 to elect members of North East Lincolnshire Council in England. This was on the same day as other local elections. These elections saw UKIP making significant gains largely at the expense of Labour, and stripping them of their majority on the council.
The 2015 United Kingdom local elections were held on Thursday 7 May 2015, the same day as the general election for the House of Commons.
The 2016 United Kingdom local elections held on Thursday 5 May 2016 were a series of local elections which were held in 124 local councils and also saw 4 mayoral elections in England which also coincided with elections to the Scottish Parliament, the Welsh Assembly, the Northern Ireland Assembly, the London Assembly, the London mayoral election and the England and Wales Police and crime commissioners. By-elections for the Westminster seats of Ogmore and Sheffield Brightside and Hillsborough were also held. These proved to be David Cameron's last local elections as leader of the Conservative Party and Prime Minister as he resigned two months later following the defeat of Remain in the referendum on Britain's continuing membership of the European Union which was held seven weeks later.
The 2016 Portsmouth City Council election took place on 5 May 2016 to elect members of Portsmouth City Council. This took place on the same day as other local elections taking place around the UK, including the London Mayoral election, Scottish Parliament and Welsh Assembly elections.
The 2017 United Kingdom local elections were held on Thursday 4 May 2017. Local elections were held across Great Britain, with elections to 35 English local authorities and all councils in Scotland and Wales.
The 2017 Welsh local elections were held on 4 May 2017 to elect members of all 22 local authorities in Wales. This included the Isle of Anglesey, which was previously up for election in 2013 due to having its elections delayed for a year. Community council elections also took place on the same day. These local elections were held as part of the 2017 local elections in the United Kingdom. Apart from Anglesey, the last elections were held in 2012. Normally these elections take place every four years, but the 2017 elections were postponed for a year in order to avoid clashing with the 2016 Welsh Assembly election, which itself had been postponed by a year to avoid clashing with the 2015 general election.
The 2022 United Kingdom local elections took place on Thursday 5 May 2022. These included elections for all London borough councils, for all local authorities in Wales and Scotland. Most seats in England were last up for election in 2018 and in Scotland and Wales in 2017. The elections coincided with the 2022 Northern Ireland Assembly election. In 91 cases, most of them in Wales, council seats were uncontested, each having only one candidate. Three seats in Scotland remained unfilled as no one nominated to fill them.