Complete guide to the London local elections 2026

Londoners are heading to the polls to elect councillors for 32 London boroughs on May 7.

A total of 1,817 seats are up for grabs across the capital, while voters in Croydon, Hackney, Lewisham, Newham and Tower Hamlets will also select their mayor.

The Conservatives currently hold six councils, while the Liberal Democrats run three. Tower Hamlets is run by the independent left-wing Aspire party and Havering is under no overall control.

At the last local elections in 2022 Labour dominated in London, winning 21 of the city’s 32 councils.

In two boroughs – Barking and Dagenham and Lewisham – Labour won every single seat.

In most London areas it was a straight fight between two of the mainstream parties.

Barnet, Bexley, Enfield, Hammersmith and Fulham, Haringey, Harrow, Hillingdon, Hounslow, Southwark, Waltham Forest, Wandsworth, Newham, Islington and Westminster returned councillors from just two parties.

Reform UK, which only officially rebranded from the Brexit Party in January 2021, did not win any seats.

Meanwhile the Greens, whose candidates have mounted a major challenge to Labour in inner London this year, returned just 17 councillors across eight boroughs.

Since 2022 Labour’s popularity in the capital has slumped, resulting in a number of council by-election losses and defections.

More than 50 Labour representatives have joined the Greens since the 2024 general election and Zack Polanski’s party has formed opposition groups in several boroughs.

Independents have also made major gains in east London, winning by-elections in Newham and Redbridge since the 2022 vote.

The mainstream political parties are running candidates in almost every ward in the capital.

Independent parties are fielding a full set of candidates in some London boroughs.

Smaller parties, such as the Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition, the Christian Peoples and The Official Monster Raving Loony Party, are also running in some areas.

Most voters will select two or three representative for their area, meaning there will likely be more than a dozen candidates to choose from on your ballot paper.

Usually, polling stations are set up at public buildings such as schools, town halls and churches.

For Thursday’s elections, you can find your assigned polling station by entering your postcode into one of the websites below:

• Where Do I Vote? A dedicated tool that allows you to find your polling station by postcode.

To cast your vote in person, you will need to take your photo ID to your local polling station. You do not need your polling card.

Polling stations open at 7am and close at 10pm.

Some London town halls will begin counting straight away on Thursday night while others are set to begin on Friday morning.

Results are set to trickle in from about 2.30am until Saturday evening.

Tower Hamlets, Newham, Croydon, Hackney and Lewisham have directly elected mayor votes to count as well as councillors.