Local election results: What we know so far and what's still to come?
2 May 2025, 07:55 | Updated: 2 May 2025, 16:09
Results are flooding in after 15 million voters headed to the polls on Thursday.
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Voting took place in 24 upper-tier authorities, with six mayoral contests and a by-election.
Initial results suggest a successful night for Reform, with a by-election win over Labour and a mayoral contest win under its belt.
LBC takes a look at what we know so far, and what's still to come?
Reform win knife-edge by-election in Runcorn and Helsby
Nigel Farage’s Reform UK has snatched up a narrow victory by six votes over Labour in Runcorn and Helsby, a major blow for Sir Keir Starmer as he failed his first by-election test as Prime Minister.
The knife-edge win for new MP Sarah Pochin saw Reform taking a constituency which Labour won with a majority of almost 14,700 less than 12 months ago.
Speaking to LBC, Farage said the country has "lost faith" in Labour and pointed to the increase in channel crossings as a key reason for their defeat.
Speaking directly to Sir Keir Starmer, Farage said: “I would just say to him, very simply, that people who put trust in you, that is eroded, albeit almost eradicated, in a very short space of time."
Reform gets its first mayor
Dame Andrea Jenkyns was also elected for Reform UK as the first Greater Lincolnshire mayor, securing a majority of almost 40,000 over the Conservatives.
Read more: Reform UK's Andrea Jenkyns becomes Greater Lincolnshire's first-ever mayor
Labour wins three mayoral contests - Tories win one
Labour has won three of the mayoral contests over night, holding on to North Tyneside and the West of England and Doncaster.
Despite this, the share of its vote has plummeted as Reform came a narrow second in all three races.
Meanwhile, the Conservatives won the mayoral contest in Cambridgeshire and Peterborough.
Council gains for Reform
Reform took control in Lincolnshire, having won more than half of the 70 total seats. The Conservatives had previously led the council with 54 seats, but were down in single figures.
There were similar stories in Staffordshire and Lancashire where Reform took control from the Conservatives.
Reform also secured Durham - with GB News presenter Darren Grimes becoming councillor for Farage's party.
The Lib Dems narrowly failed to take control of Devon County Council, another council which had been previously Conservative-run.
However amid the council losses the Tories took a mayoralty from Labour, with victory for ex-MP Paul Bristow in Cambridgeshire and Peterborough.
The position had been Labour held since 2021, but their candidate Anna Smith came in third behind the Lib Dems.
Northumberland was the first county council to declare all its results, with Conservatives winning 26 seats, Reform 23, Labour eight, Independents seven, Liberal Democrats three and Greens two.
Professor Sir John Curtice - Polling Expert & Professor of Politics at the University of Strathclyde, told LBC: "Reform are now significant players, at least for the time being in our electoral politics, and they do challenge the traditional dominance of Conservative Labour.
“Reform have won more seats, and they have won more votes in the results that have been declared overnight and they're probably heading for control of a couple of councils.”
Still to come?
Votes are being counted in over 1,600 council seats in England.
Widespread results from council elections aren't expected until later today.
