2026 Colchester City Council election

Last updated
2026 Colchester City Council election
Flag of Essex.svg
  2024 7 May 2026 (2026-05-07)2027 

All 51 seats to Colchester City Council
26 seats needed for a majority
  No image wide.svg No image wide.svg No image wide.svg
LeaderPaul Dundas [1] Julie YoungMartin Goss
Party Conservative Labour Liberal Democrats
Last election19 seats, 30.0%14 seats, 32.5%15 seats, 22.9%
Current seats191414
Seats neededIncrease2.svg 7Increase2.svg 12Increase2.svg 12

  No image wide.svg No image wide.svg
LeaderRichard
Kirkby-Taylor
Party Green Independent
Last election3 seats, 10.2%0 seats, 2.7%
Current seats31
Seats neededIncrease2.svg 23Increase2.svg 25

Incumbent Leader

David King
Liberal Democrats
No overall control



The 2026 Colchester City Council election is due to take place on 7 May 2026 to elect members of Colchester City Council in Essex, England. [2] This will take place on the same day as other local elections.

Contents

Due to ward boundary changes, all fifty-one councillors will be up for election.

Background

Following the previous election, a minority Liberal Democrat administration continued to run the council under the leadership of David King (Mile End), with Labour and the Green Party providing support on a case-by-case basis.[ citation needed ]

On 30 May 2024, the newly appointed Mayor of Colchester, Lesley Scott-Boutell (Stanway) left the Liberal Democrat group to sit as an Independent. [3]

This will be the first Colchester local election since the 2024 general election, at which Labour's Pam Cox won the Colchester constituency from the Conservatives. This is the first time a Labour MP has representated part of the City since the 1945 general election.

Boundary changes

Ward boundary changes will take place at this election, leading to all fifty-one councillors being elected from seventeen, three-member wards. [4] This will be the first whole council election since the 2016 election.

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References

  1. "Councillors". Colchester City Council . Retrieved 4 September 2024.
  2. "Election timetable in England". Electoral Commission. 31 January 2023. Retrieved 4 September 2024.
  3. "Colchester councillor Lesley Scott-Boutell quits Lib Dems". Elliot Deady. Colchester Gazette. 30 May 2024. Retrieved 4 September 2024.
  4. "Consultation launched on review of local election boundaries in Colchester". Local Government Boundary Commission. 30 July 2024. Retrieved 4 September 2024.