Reform UK picked up 400 seats in last week’s local elections, while Labour lost 260, according to final results released Thursday. The swing marks the first major electoral test for Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s government since the 2024 general election and hands Nigel Farage’s party a foothold in council chambers across England.
The scale of the shift
Reform UK’s gains came mostly in northern and Midlands councils that voted heavily for Brexit in 2016 and later switched to Labour in 2024. The party now holds more than 700 seats nationwide, up from around 300 before the vote. Labour’s losses were concentrated in similar areas — places where the party had won back “red wall” seats two years ago but failed to hold those voters’ support.
Turnout was lower than in 2026 by about 4 percent, which analysts say hurt Labour more than Reform. The Conservatives also lost around 80 seats, leaving them with just over 500 council seats — their worst local election result since the 1990s.
Labour’s defeat in these elections raises questions about the party’s strategy heading into the next general election, expected in 2029 or earlier. Starmer had promised to rebuild trust with working-class voters who abandoned Labour under Jeremy Corbyn. But the local results suggest that trust hasn’t fully returned.
Reform UK’s campaign focused on immigration, NHS waiting times, and council tax rises — issues that came up repeatedly on doorsteps. Labour officials acknowledged the party struggled to counter those messages in seats where Reform was the main challenger.
The result also complicates Labour’s internal debate over housebuilding targets and greenbelt protections. Several of the seats Reform took had Labour councillors who opposed local development plans.
Reform’s breakthrough
For Reform UK, the 400-seat gain cements its status as a serious local force. The party had previously won only a handful of council seats, mostly in by-elections. Now it has a base of councillors who can claim a mandate on bread-and-butter issues like potholes and bin collections.
Farage called the results “a rejection of the Westminster status quo” in a video posted after the final count. He said the party would field candidates in every constituency at the next general election — a threat that could split the right‑of‑centre vote and hurt the Conservatives as much as Labour.
The next big test for Reform will come in the 2027 mayoral elections, where it plans to run candidates in the West Midlands, Greater Manchester, and Tees Valley.
Unanswered questions
Labour is now left to figure out how to win back the voters it lost. Starmer’s team will study the ward-level results to see whether Reform’s gains were driven by former Labour voters or by people who previously stayed home. The prime minister has no immediate plans to reshuffle his cabinet, but party insiders expect a renewed focus on housing and NHS reform in the autumn conference season.
Reform’s rise also puts pressure on Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch, whose party lost seats in areas where Reform did well. Badenoch has ruled out any electoral pact with Reform, but some Tory MPs privately argue the two parties should avoid splitting the vote in key seats.
The next round of by-elections, triggered by the resignations of two Labour MPs, will offer an early indicator of whether the local election trend holds at the national level. Those votes are expected in late July.
