As expected, the 2026 London borough elections resulted in some dramatic changes to the capital’s political map, most notably Labour’s loss of control of about half of the boroughs it had won in 2022 and the Green Party’s winning control of three. It is the first time London voters have put the Greens in charge of a local authority. The same applies to Reform UK, which won one of the 32 boroughs.
At the same time, however, Labour again won more London councils than any other party and the Conservatives again won the second highest number. The Liberal Democrats retained the three they already held. The local Aspire Party retained its control of one borough.
Depending on how No Overall Control is defined, either seven of nine boroughs ended up that way. Two of the five boroughs that use the Mayor and Cabinet governance model did not see any party win a council majority, a situation that to some extent limits the executive powers of the Mayors.
Following post-election negotiations in the seven boroughs with no council majority and no Mayors, by 1 June, 2026 the following outcomes were arrived at:
- Labour had majority control of nine boroughs, led minority administrations in two boroughs and held the mayoralty in one non-council majority borough. The party was therefore pre-eminent in 12 boroughs altogether.
- The Conservatives had majority control of six boroughs, led minority administrations in one boroughs and held the mayoralty in one non-council majority borough. The party was therefore pre-eminent in nine boroughs altogether.
- The Greens had majority control in three boroughs (and held the mayoralties of two of those) and led minority administrations in three others, making them pre-eminent in six boroughs altogether.
- The Liberal Democrats have majority control in three boroughs.
- The Aspire Party has majority control and holds the mayoralty in one borough.
- Reform UK has majority control in one borough.
Labour won 696 of the capital’s 1,817 seats on 7 May, the Conservatives won 407, the Greens 297, the Lib Dems 243, Reform 79, Aspire 33 and various others, including candidates from other local parties and Independents, 60. The contest for two seats in a ward in Hillingdon was postponed until 18 June due to the death of one of the candidates.
The majority of London’s councils didn’t begin their counts until the morning after Thursday 7 May, when the elections took place. Only ten stuck with tradition and counted overnight. Some didn’t complete the job until Saturday 9 May.
London Decides, the ward-by-ward guide to the elections compiled by Lewis Baston and Dave Hill in collaboration with public affairs specialists Lowick and Hedry, is here.
This article was last updated on 4 June 2026 and will be updated again after 18 June, when the postponed elections in Hillingdon are scheduled to take place. All figures in brackets show changes in seat numbers compared with the results in 2022.
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BARKING & DAGENHAM: Labour hold
Con 0 (-), Green 4 (+4), Lab 38 (-13), Lib Dem 0 (-), Reform 9 (+9).
Labour’s leadership in this borough, with its recent history of support for far-Right parties, was quietly confident that it would blunt Reform’s attacks. It also correctly anticipated that the Greens would take votes from them too. But although the one-party state has fallen, a big Labour majority remains.
BARNET: Labour loss to No Overall Control
Con 31 (+9), Green 1 (+1), Lab 31 (-10), Lib Dem 0 (-), Reform 0 (-).
The Conservatives fell just one seat short of recapturing one of the three councils they lost control of in 2022, leaving the extraordinary situation of a lone Green councillor holding the balance of power between the two biggest of the traditionally big parties. However, at the council’s Annual Meeting on 19 May, Labour’s Barry Rawlings, who had led the previous administration, was appointed to continue as council leader with the help of the Conservatives.
BEXLEY: Conservative hold
Con 29 (-4), Green 0 (-), Lab 9 (-3), Lib Dem 0 (-), Reform 7 (+7).
This looked bound to go Reform, but although the party came close to breaking through in several wards, they’ve fallen way short in terms of seats to finish third behind Labour. Interviewed last autumn, the borough’s then-outgoing Tory leader Teresa O’Neill insisted Bexley voters would stick with her party. She was right.
BRENT: Labour loss to No Overall Control
Con 11 (+6), Green 9 (+9), Lab 26 (-23), Lib Dem 11 (+8), Reform 0 (0).
There were heavy losses here for Labour, which seemed likely to hang on to a majority but in the end fell three seats short of the 29 required. In an unexpected twist, the council’s Annual Meeting on 20 May saw the Labour group strike a deal with the Conservatives which left Muhammed Butt as leader of a minority administration but was followed by his deputy disclosing that Labour’s national executive committee had banned Labour groups from reaching agreements with Greens.
BROMLEY: Conservative hold
Con 35 (-1), Green 0 (0), Lab 8 (-4), Lib Dem 6 (+1), Reform 6 (+6), Ind 3 (-2).
The Farage kite barely got off the ground here, with Reform finishing only joint third and the Conservatives, safe as houses in the end, losing only one seat compared with 2022. The Independents are from the Chislehurst Matters local group.
CAMDEN: Labour hold
Con 3 (-), Green 11 (+10), Lab 30 (-17), Lib Dem 10 (+6), Reform 0 (-), Ind 1 (+1).
This looked like a strong contender to go NOC, but Labour has clung on with a slim majority. Among those to lose a Labour seat was Richard Olszewski, the borough’s now former leader who had switched to Holborn & Covent Garden ward in the hope of staying safe, only to be unseated by three Greens. He will be succeeded by new Labour group leader Sagal Abdi-Wali. The Independent is a Your Party proxy who won under the banner Camden People’s Alliance.
CROYDON: Conservatives hold mayoralty, no council majority
Council: Con 28 (-5), Green 8 (+6), Lab 30 (-4), Lib Dem 2 (+1), Reform 2 (+2).
A second very close mayoral result has seen Perry re-elected for a second term. The council results too are very similar to last time, with Labour again just about the largest party although newcomers Reform, the Lib Dems and, in particular, the Greens have between them made a larger dent in the big duopoly than the latter pair achieved in 2022 (though one of the Greens has been suspended by his party). The overall composition means Mayor Perry and his cabinet will be very much running the show, as before.
EALING: Labour hold
Con 5 (-), Green 5 (+5), Lab 46 (-13), Lib Dem 13 (+7), Reform 0 (-). Ind 1 (+1).
Ealing Council outcomes used to reflect those of the nation. These days it is one of Labour’s safest London boroughs. The Greens and the Lib Dems made inroads along with a single Your Party proxy (Ealing Community Independents) but Labour’s majority, though reduced, is still large. On 18 May it was reported that a newly elected Green councillor had resigned, meaning a by-election will have to be held.
ENFIELD: Labour loss to No Overall Control
Con 31 (+6), Green 5 (+5), Labour 27 (-11), Lib Dem 0 (-), Reform 0 (-).
The Conservatives came very close to winning the majority they craved, but fell one seat short of the 32 required. The outcome leaves the five Greens holding the balance of power, raises the novel possibility of they and the Tories forming some sort of alliance against Green Belt development, including the government’s New Town proposals. Early indications of that were reported by Enfield Dispatch.
GREENWICH: Labour hold
Con 6 (+3), Green 13 (+13), Lab 35 (-17), Lib Dem 0 (-), Reform 1 (+1).
This one looked holdable for Labour, but NOC was also a distinct possibility. In the end, the party won with 15 seats to spare despite a fall of 17 compared with 2022. The Greens will form the opposition group.
HACKNEY: Greens gain mayoralty and council majority from Labour
Council: Con 6 (+1), Green 42 (+40), Lab 9 (-41), Lib Dem 0 (-), Reform 0 (-).
The Greens have stormed and overrun a formerly rock-solid Labour borough, ejecting councillors who have been in their seats for many years. The new Mayor Garbett was already a councillor – re-elected in her ward, she will now have to resign her seat – and was a member of the London Assembly for two years before resigning following her mayoral win, so she has some relevant experience. By contrast, many of her new councillor colleagues have none. Garbett quite quickly announced some of the members of her cabinet.
HAMMERSMITH & FULHAM: Labour hold
Con 12 (+2). Green 0 (-), Lab 38 (-2), Lib Dem 0 (-), Reform 0 (-).
Extraordinary to recall that this was a trail-blazing Conservative borough, PM David Cameron’s favourite, until its surprise capture by Labour in 2014. Since then, the Tories have been firmly shut out. That has continued, even in this very bad year for Labour.
HARINGEY: Labour loss to No Overall Control
Con 0 (-), Green 28 (+28), Lab 21 (-29), Lib Dem 8 (+1).
The Greens came tantalisingly close to another win here, devouring wards in the centre-south of the borough and taking other seats in split wards to finish just one short of a majority. The Lib Dems would have hoped to have gained more than just one seat. Since the elections, it has emerged that one of the successful Green candidates was ineligible to stand and then a Labour councillor stepped down for personal reasons. Two by-elections will now have to be held.
On 20 May, a full meeting of the council resulted in a minority Green administration being formed after the Lib Dem group abstained. The new leader is Mark Blake, previously a Labour councillor.
HARROW: Conservative hold
Con 42 (+11), Green 0 (-), Lab 12 (-12), Lib Dem 0 (-), Reform 0 (-), Ind 1 (+1).
No unpredicted outcome this time from the Metro-land borough, with the Tories enjoying a swing in their favour, though one of their winners was suspended by the party shortly after he appeared the ballot papers after some obnoxious social media activity was unearthed. Local Your Party proxies Arise managed to deprive Labour of a seat too. A successful Conservative candidate was suspended by his party during the election campaign and therefore currently sits as an Independent, pending an investigation.
HAVERING: Reform gain from No Overall Control
Con 0 (-23), Green 0 (-), Lab 2 (-7), Lib Dem 0 (-), Reform 39 (+39), Residents 14 (-9)
Reform UK has won its first and only London council, expunging the Conservatives from Havering completely. The borough’s famous Residents’ Association candidates, who have led a minority administration for the past four years, hung on quite well in the circumstances. Assuming they can agree among themselves, they will form the opposition.
HILLINGDON: Conservative hold
Con 30 (30), Green 1 (+1), Lab 16 (-7), Lib Dem 0 (-), Reform 4 (+4).
Hillingdon Tories are famously resilient. On 7 May they won exactly the same number of seats as in 2022, with Reform making little progress. They could add two more on 18 June when the election for the two-seat Hillingdon West ward, postponed due to the death of one of the candidates, will take place. This page will be updated to record that result.
HOUNSLOW: Labour hold
Con 17 (+7), Green 3 (+3), Lab 32 (-20), Lib Dem 1 (+1), Reform 8 (+8), Ind 1(+)
Always one of the more likely Labour holds, though it turned out to be very close indeed. The local party has survived having its majority eroded from an assortment of directions. It stands at just one. Given Hounslow Labour’s rather fractious recent history, it will be interesting to see if it lasts.
ISLINGTON: Labour hold
Con 0 (0), Green 19 (+16), Lab 32 (-16), Lib Dem 0 (-), Reform 0 (-).
There are lots of Green-minded people in the original “trendy” Left borough but also lots of Labour loyalists and that’s why Labour has been able to survive, despite losing a lot of seats.
KENSINGTON & CHELSEA: Conservative hold
Con 34 (-1), Green 0 (-), Lab 13 (-), Lib Dem 3 (+1), Reform o (-).
An emphatic hold for the Tories in their safest London borough. They lost one seat to the Lib Dems (in their Earl’s Court stronghold). Otherwise, no change. (For consistency, I’ve linked to the BBC website above, but it contains two mistakes: Labour did not increase its representation in 2026 and the Greens did not see a loss of one seat, as they didn’t win any seats in 2022).
KINGSTON: Liberal Democrat hold
Con 2 (-1), Green 0 (-), Labour 0 (-), Lib Dem 44 (-), Reform 0 (-), Residents 2 (+1).
The Lib Dems have consolidated their dominant position. The Conservatives have managed to slip even further behind.
LAMBETH: Labour loss to No Overall Control
Con 0 (-), Green 29 (+27), Lab 26 (-32), Lib Dem 8 (+5), Reform 0 (-).
The Greens had long had a foothold here, though they actually slipped back in 2022. Not this time. Hopes that they could win a majority went unfulfilled, but they became the biggest party on the 63-seat council with Labour three behind. There was, though, a hiccup: prior to the election, but too late to remove her from the ballot papers, two of their candidates were arrested over alleged antisemitic social media posts and one of them got elected in Streatham St Leonard’s ward.
At some point her party suspended her, meaning she would have to sit as an Independent pending an investigation. She then resigned from the council, meaning a by-election will have to be held. On 18 May it was announced that another councillor elected as a Green had resigned, giving poor health as her reason. These departures reduced the size of the Green group to 27.
However, by 22 May the Greens had struck a deal with the Liberal Democrats, who had improved their position at the main elections. This involved uniting around ending the leader and cabinet local government model and reviving the old committee system in its place, and enabling a Green leader to be put at the head of a minority administration.
An Extraordinary Meeting, was scheduled for 1 June with a view to adopting the principle of that change and the council’s preceding Annual Meeting was adjourned so that it could continue after the Extraordinary Meeting and vote in favour of the change. However, before that happened the Greens changed their minds, resulting in a “hybrid cabinet committee” – a tweaking of the existing model – being adopted instead.
LEWISHAM: Greens gain mayoralty and council from Labour
Council: Con 0 (-), Green 40 (+40), Lab 14 (-40), Lid Dem 0 (-), Reform 0 (-).
This was a staggering result for the Greens, who have enjoyed low level support in Lewisham before but have now conquered it in style, making 2026 only the third local election year in the borough’s history when Labour hasn’t won.
MERTON: Labour hold
Con 4 (-3). Green 0 (-). Lab 32 (+1). Lib Dem 19 (+2). Ind 2 (-).
As anticipated in London Decides, the Lib Dems had to climb some pretty steep hills in strong Labour wards to win. They didn’t make it and Labour actually went up by one seat compared with 2022. The famous Merton Park Independents have won their two seats again.
NEWHAM: Labour holds mayoralty, loses council to No Overall Control
In the mayoral race, the anti-Labour vote split allowing Hussain to prevail with a very small share of the vote. As executive Mayor, power is centralised with him and councillors will have difficulty impeding his will even though Labour does not have a majority. However, the relationships between the three party groups and how they play out in the various committees will be interesting. The long-fractious state of the Labour Party in Newham suggests there is potential for defections.
At the council’s Annual Meeting held at East Ham Town Hall on 20 May, 20226, the council elected Green councillor Nate Higgins as its civic mayor and council chair.
REDBRIDGE: Labour hold
Con 5 (-), Green 5 (+5), Lab 43 (-15), Lib Dem 0 (-), Reform 1 (+1), Redbridge Indepdents 9 (+9).
As anticipated, this borough has generated an exotic mix of councillors, from Green to Reform, from the Muslim-based Redbridge Independents Your Party proxies to surviving Conservatives. However, it also looked a banker to go to NOC, yet Labour candidates have done surprising well and the party’s majority remains formidable.
RICHMOND: Liberal Democrat hold
Con 0 (-1), Green 0 (-5), Lab 0 (-), Lib Dem 54 (+6), Reform 0 (-).
A full house for the Lib Dems. No pact this time with the Greens, who’ve lost every seat they won in 2022. The Tories are down to zero, as they had been since a by-election in Jan 2024 deprived them of the only seat they won last time.
SOUTHWARK: Labour loss to No Overall Control
Con 0 (-), Green 22 (+22), Lab 29 (-23), Lib Dem 12 (+1), Reform 0 (-).
Another big rise in the Green tide in the sort of inner borough you’d expect it. The Lib Dems had entertained thoughts of becoming the largest party, but in the end increased its tally by only one. Yet Labour is still the biggest party. Might the Labour group do some sort of deal with one of the others? It’s hard to imagine Labour and the Greens getting along in view of recent history, which has seen some councillors elected for Labour in 2022 change sides. So if there is to be some sort of cross-party collaboration, it seems most likely to be between Labour and their older, more experienced, opponents, the Lib Dems.
SUTTON: Liberal Democrat hold
Con 0 (-20), Green 0 (-), Lab 1 (-2), Lib Dem 51 (+22), Reform 2 (+2), Ind 1 (-2).
A huge win for the Lib Dems. The right-wing vote in this Leave-voting borough went in two different directions. As a result, the Tories have been wiped out and Reform has become the new opposition group – of two.
TOWER HAMLETS: Aspire holds mayoralty and council majority
Council: Con 1 (-), Green 5 (+4), Lab 5 (-14), Lib Dem 1 (+1), Aspire 33 (+9).
Lutfur Rahman has won for a second time since returning from his ban and his third time in all following his win as an independent in the borough’s inaugural mayoral contest in 2010 (the 2014 mayoral election in which he also topped the poll was later declared void). The Aspire party he leads has increased its majority too.
WALTHAM FOREST: Green gain from Labour
Con 14 (+1), Green 31 (+31), Lab 15 (-32), Lib Dem 0 (-), Reform 0 (-).
This is arguably the most stunning Green victory because they have literally raced from nought in 2022 to a majority in 2026. The result is also notable for the Tories picking up a seat when it seemed very possible that Reform would break its Waltham Forest duck.
WANDSWORTH: Labour loss to No Overall Control
Con 29 (+7), Green 0 (-), Lab 28 (-7), Lib Dem 0 (-), Reform 0 (-), Ind 1 (-).
This very close outcome placed Malcom Grimston, the sole Independent (and a former Conservative) in the interesting position of numerically holding the balance of power. But although the Tories didn’t quite get over the line in their their former flagship borough, they have formed a minority administration with Grimston’s backing on a “confidence and supply” basis.
WESTMINSTER: Conservative gain from Labour
Con 32 (+9), Green 0 (-), Lab 22 (-9), Lib Dem 0 (-), Reform 0 (-).
The Tories, as anticipated, have taken back the prestige council they lost for the first time ever in 2022. Headline results can be a little deceptive in Westminster, because the distribution of support across the borough is uneven – popular vote shares tend to be closer than seat results suggest. But the Tories won where they needed to.
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Interesting and great coverage of London.