2026 local elections North East results timings

Our region’s political landscape could be radically reshaped, with ‘all out’ elections being held in a number of areas that have been traditional Labour strongholds.

Every council seat in Newcastle, Gateshead, Sunderland, South Tyneside is up for grabs.

One-third of the seats in both North Tyneside and Hartlepool will also be contested.

There are no elections for either of the county councils of Durham and Northumberland, where elections are staged once every four years and were last held in May 2025.

This is a massive and complex set of elections, with political rivals fighting over more than 5,000 seats on 136 councils across England.

Rather than starting the process of counting votes immediately after the polls close on Thursday and declaring results overnight, most of our councils are holding their counts during the daytime on Friday, May 8.

And while counting staff in places like Sunderland and Newcastle have been famed for their speed in the past, this Friday could be a very long day – particularly for the four councils holding all out elections.

The fact that three candidates will be elected for each ward in Newcastle, Gateshead, Sunderland, South Tyneside means that there is a high volume of candidates standing. 

The prospect of recounts and the added time taken to tally votes from ballot papers where people can support multiple candidates means there is major uncertainty among local authority staff on exactly how long the counting might take.

Based on the information we have at the moment, here is when to expect results to come through in your area:

Newcastle

Counting of votes will be split into two sessions, with 13 wards in the morning of Friday, May 8 and 13 in the afternoon. A first round of result declarations is expected to begin at around 11.30am, and the second from 3pm. 

The city council estimates that results for all 26 electoral wards should be declared by roughly 4.30pm.

Gateshead

Like Newcastle, Gateshead Council’s vote counting will also be split between morning and afternoon sessions on the Friday. It is expected that all results for Gateshead’s 22 wards should be declared by 5pm.

Sunderland

Sunderland City Council expects that it will not declare any results before 1pm on Friday, May 8. Declarations for all of its 25 electoral wards are expected to continue until the late afternoon.

South Tyneside

The first of the results in South Tyneside’s 18 wards is expected around 12.30pm on Friday, May 8. Results will continue throughout the afternoon, with the final announcements expected after 5pm.

North Tyneside

North Tyneside is only holding a one-third election this year, with one councillor to be elected for each of its 20 wards. Its count will also be held in the daytime on Friday, however.

It is currently expected that the results will start to be announced at around 12.15pm and be fully declared by roughly 1.45pm.

Hartlepool

Hartlepool is the only council in our region staging an overnight count.12 out of its total 36 council seats are up for grabs on election day and its results are expected to have been announced by 2am on Friday, May 8.