It really could go either way—the tension here is palpable
In London's 2026 council elections, voters have sent a fractured but telling message: the Liberal Democrats consolidated their hold on Richmond-upon-Thames with a clean sweep, Labour defended its inner-London strongholds, and the Conservatives clung to relevance in Wandsworth and Westminster — all while Reform UK tested the outer boroughs and turnout surged across the capital. These results reflect not merely shifting party allegiances, but a city wrestling with questions of local identity, national trust, and what it means to govern well in uncertain times.
- Wandsworth hangs in genuine suspense — Conservatives on 21 seats, Labour on 19 — as a council that only flipped from a 44-year Tory reign in 2022 threatens to flip back before the night is out.
- The Liberal Democrats delivered the evening's most emphatic statement, claiming all 54 seats in Richmond-upon-Thames and wiping out the Greens' entire local presence in the process.
- Reform UK's ambitions in Bexley are meeting unexpected resistance, with a dramatic turnout surge — from 32.8% to 45.7% — suggesting voters are actively choosing to deny them the dominance they achieved in Kent.
- Westminster City Council, lost by the Conservatives in 2022, is expected to return to Tory hands, with the mayor's Oxford Street pedestrianisation scheme casting a long shadow over Labour's local campaign.
- Across multiple boroughs, split-ticket voting and high turnout are straining counting operations, with Havering's declaration pushed to 7:30 a.m. as officials navigate a more complex electorate than 2022 produced.
The Liberal Democrats claimed the night's most decisive result in Richmond-upon-Thames, sweeping all 54 council seats in a borough they have controlled since 2018. The Greens, who had hoped to make capital gains, lost all five of their councillors there. The Lib Dems also held Sutton comfortably, though their hopes of taking Merton from Labour remain uncertain — Labour gained one seat in Wandle ward while the Lib Dems clawed one back in Abbey ward, leaving the borough genuinely in play.
The real drama of the night is centred on Wandsworth, where Conservatives hold 21 seats to Labour's 19 with counting still underway. The council flipped to Labour in 2022, ending a Conservative dominance stretching back to 1978, and both parties are watching each ward result with visible intensity. Labour's Eleanor Stringer, deputy leader in Merton, credited local investments — lower council tax, new street trees, well-maintained parks — for her party's performance, and declined to be drawn on national political pressures.
In Bexley, a traditional Conservative stronghold that Reform UK had marked as a prime London target, voters appear to have pulled back from the brink. Turnout jumped sharply to 45.7 percent from 32.8 percent in 2022, with the Conservative London Assembly member acknowledging that concerns about Reform's record elsewhere may have tempered its advance. The count continues with no result imminent.
Westminster City Council, lost by the Conservatives in 2022, is widely expected to return to Tory hands. The pedestrianisation of Oxford Street — imposed by Mayor Sadiq Khan after he seized planning powers from the council — became a defining local issue, and some Labour figures privately concede it may have cost them votes even as it served a broader London agenda.
Across the capital, turnout has risen markedly compared to 2022, with split-ticket voting complicating counts in several boroughs. In Havering, where Reform UK had been expected to dominate, Green candidate Angelina Leatherbarrow spoke of hoping to provide meaningful opposition if the night went as feared. The declaration there has been pushed back to 7:30 a.m. — a small but telling sign of how engaged, and how divided, London's electorate has become.
The Liberal Democrats have claimed a commanding victory in Richmond-upon-Thames, sweeping all 54 seats on the council they have controlled since 2018. Across London's boroughs, the night has delivered a mixed picture: Labour held Hammersmith and Fulham and gained ground in Merton, while the real drama is unfolding in Wandsworth, where the outcome remains genuinely uncertain as votes are still being tallied.
In Wandsworth, the tension is palpable. With Conservatives on 21 seats and Labour on 19, either party could claim control when the final results are announced. The stakes are high because this council flipped to Labour in 2022, ending a Conservative reign that had lasted since 1978. Both camps are erupting in applause as each ward result comes in, but no one yet knows which way the pendulum will swing. The race is tight enough that observers say it could genuinely go either way.
The Liberal Democrats' performance in Richmond-upon-Thames represents a decisive statement. They took every single seat, a clean sweep that underscores their dominance in this southwest London borough. The Greens, by contrast, lost all five of their councillors there—a setback for a party that had been expecting to make gains across the capital. The Lib Dems also held Sutton with nearly all available seats, though they are still hoping to wrest control of Merton from Labour, where the contest is proving unpredictable. Labour has already gained one seat from the Lib Dems in Wandle ward, but the Lib Dems have clawed back a seat in Abbey ward, making the overall picture genuinely fluid.
Eleanor Stringer, Labour's deputy leader in Merton, expressed satisfaction with her party's performance. She credited the team's hard work and pointed to tangible local investments—lower council tax than neighboring boroughs, new street trees, pop-up tips, and well-maintained parks—as evidence that residents appreciate Labour's stewardship. When asked about pressure on the prime minister, she deflected, saying it was too early to discuss national politics and that the focus should remain on serving residents and putting the country first.
In Bexley, another traditional Conservative stronghold, the picture is equally contested. Reform UK has made this council one of its top London targets, and the Conservative London Assembly member Tom Turrell acknowledged that Reform had expected to dominate here as they did in Kent last year. But voters appear to have hesitated, concerned about the chaos Reform has generated elsewhere. Turnout in Bexley jumped to 45.7 percent from 32.8 percent in 2022, suggesting genuine engagement with the choice at stake. The count is ongoing, and no result is expected for some time.
Westminster City Council is also in play. Conservatives and Labour councillors both believe the Tories will regain control of a council they lost to Labour in 2022. The pedestrianization of Oxford Street has loomed large in the campaign—a scheme that Westminster's Conservatives fiercely opposed and that London Mayor Sadiq Khan ultimately imposed after seizing planning powers from the council. Some Labour supporters privately acknowledge that the mayor's intervention may have cost them votes locally, even as it advanced a broader London agenda.
Turnout across multiple boroughs has surged compared to 2022. In Havering, where the count is taking place at the City Pavilion, turnout exceeded 50 percent in several wards. The higher engagement has complicated the counting process: many voters are splitting their ballots across parties, and some races are close enough that recounts may be necessary. The declaration in Havering has already been pushed back to 7:30 a.m. as officials work through the volume and complexity of votes cast.
Green candidate Angelina Leatherbarrow in Havering expressed mixed feelings about the night, hoping her party might finish second or third in some wards if Labour voters shift toward the Greens. She acknowledged that if Reform sweeps the board as expected, the borough will need a strong opposition presence. The night has revealed that London's electorate is engaged, divided, and willing to split votes across parties in ways that make the final picture harder to predict than simple polling might suggest.
Notable Quotes
It's the local stuff that matters. It's our community and we care about it.— Eleanor Stringer, Labour deputy leader of Merton Council
People have realised that they want to keep that and they don't want to risk it with the chaos that they've seen from Reform in Kent.— Tom Turrell, Conservative London Assembly member for Bexley and Bromley
The Hearth Conversation Another angle on the story
What made Wandsworth so pivotal tonight?
It's the reversal that matters. Conservatives held it for nearly fifty years before Labour took it in 2022. If Labour loses it back, it signals something about the national mood. If they hold it, it suggests they're holding ground in places that should be difficult for them.
And the Lib Dems sweeping Richmond—is that surprising?
Not entirely. They've controlled it since 2018. But taking every single seat, all 54? That's dominance. The Greens lost all their councillors there, which is notable because they were expecting to gain across London. Richmond rejected that.
Why is turnout mattering so much tonight?
Higher turnout usually means people are genuinely engaged with the choice, not just voting by habit. In Bexley, it jumped from 33 percent to nearly 46 percent. That kind of shift suggests voters were thinking hard about whether they wanted Reform, or whether they preferred the known quantity of the Conservatives.
What's the Oxford Street thing about in Westminster?
The mayor imposed a pedestrianization scheme that Westminster's Conservatives hated. He had to seize planning powers to do it because the council rejected it. Now some Labour people are saying that move may have cost them votes locally, even though it was the right call for London overall. It's a tension between local and city-wide interests.
Is Reform actually winning, or just making noise?
That's what tonight will tell us. In Bexley, their agent thinks they'll take the council. The Conservative assembly member thinks they'll hold it. The fact that it's genuinely uncertain—that's the story. Reform is competitive in places they shouldn't be.
What does Merton tell us?
It's topsy-turvy. Labour gained a seat from the Lib Dems in one ward, then the Lib Dems took one back from Labour in another. The Lib Dems are hoping to take overall control, but Labour is fighting hard. It's the kind of ward-by-ward battle that suggests no party has a clear mandate.