Thousands of council seats in England are up for grabs, while voters in Wales and Scotland will elect their national Parliament on a vital day for Keir Starmer and his opponents
Millions of voters will go to the polls on Thursday – with thousands of council seats in England and the national Parliaments in Wales and Scotland up for grabs.
A total of 5,013 councillors will be elected in England, with elections being held for 134 of England’s 317 councils. These include 32 London boroughs, six county councils and six unitary authorities, including the newly-created East Surrey and West Surrey.
Labour is defending 2,557 seats, the Tories 1,362 and the Lib Dems 684. A further 410 are held by other parties, including independents.
Experts have predicted hundreds of Labour seats will go, in spite of Keir Starmer’s plea for voters to “choose progress over politics of anger”. It is also expected to be a difficult day for the Tories, while Nigel Farage’s Reform UK is tipped to be the biggest winner.
If you’re unsure whether there’s going to be an election in your area, use our helpful tool below.
READ MORE: Don’t ‘swipe left’ on Keir Starmer in elections aftermath, Labour MPs toldREAD MORE: Labour releases dossier of Green Party candidates with track record of hateful and dangerous views
Polls are open between 7am and 10pm with the results expected to be declared from the early hours of Friday morning.
While some councils will see all seats being contested, some authorities elect councillors in cycles. Seven district councils will see half of seats up for election, while dozens more will see a third up for grabs.
The Senedd, the Labour-controlled Welsh Parliament, will see 96 members elected. This is up from its current 60. Wales has 16 constituencies, each electing six members. And the long-anticipated Holyrood election will see voters in Scotland pick 129 Members of the Scottish Parliament (MSPs).
Scottish Labour Anas Sarwar hit the headlines in February when he called for Keir Starmer to step down. In a plea to voters ahead of Thursday’s crunch poll, the PM wrote in The Mirror: “On Thursday, when you go to put your vote in the ballot box, there’s a clear choice on that piece of paper. Unity or division. Progress versus the politics of anger. The right plan for our country up against easy answers that will lead us nowhere.”
Last week top election expert Robert Hayward said Labour was on course to lose around 1,800 seats. The Tories, he added, may shed around 600. Meanwhile Reform could pick up around 1,500, with the Greens poised to win around 500.