Low turnout ‘troubling’
Thirteen by-elections followed the resignation of Labour councillors after being voted into Parliament, with a net loss of nine seats.
Thirteen by-elections followed the resignation of Labour councillors after being voted into Parliament, with a net loss of nine seats.
Following a general election, especially one as dramatic as 4 July’s, council by-elections can provide evidence about voters in the new political environment.
The 2 May local elections saw the Conservatives hit their lowest number of councillors and councils controlled for a quarter of a century.
Astonishingly, by the time you read this, we will already be half-way through the general election campaign.
There is usually a sparsity of local by-elections in the weeks before the annual May contests, and 2024 is no exception.
On 2 May, 107 councils across England go to the polls, with more than 2,600 seats at stake.
The LGA has joined forces with the Electoral Commission and the Jo Cox Foundation to call for no abuse towards candidates at the 2 May local elections.
At the very end of February, the Conservatives made a gain from the Liberal Democrats, their first since November 2022.
With council, mayoral and police and crime commissioner elections just over a month away, I wanted to say thank you to everyone in local government who helps ensure our local democracy works effectively.
The last month produced a small crop of by-elections but two-thirds of them saw a seat change hands amid some surprising results.