Local elections 2026: North West results

Thursday was a bruising night for Labour in the North West and a triumph for Reform, with the Nigel Farage-led party picking up more than 200 seats across the region.

• READ MORE: What does a strong Reform mean for the property industry?

Votes have now come in for all of the local elections held on Thursday. At a glance, based on majority swings, the headline-grabbing elections were St Helens, Stockport, and Tameside.

St Helens had an all-out election that saw the evisceration of the Labour Party in the borough. The Keir Starmer-led party lost 25 of the 27 seats that were up for grabs. Reform is the party with an overall majority, winning 34 seats in the election.

Stockport left no-overall control for the first time in 15 years thanks to Liberal Democrats picking up two seats from Labour.

Over in Tameside, Labour lost its overall majority for the first time in 47 years, leaving the council in no-overall control.

Manchester also deserves a mention. The Labour stronghold shows signs of weakening after Thursday – 24 of the 30 Labour seats up for election were lost. Most of these went to the Greens. While Labour still has a comfortable majority at 63 seats, one can expect a bit more division during town hall meetings going forward.

Looking a bit further north from Greater Manchester and Liverpool City Region – Lancashire’s post-election tale is one of no-overall control, with Labour losing its overall majorities in Blackburn with Darwen, Hyndburn, and Preston.

• Dive deeper into what the election results mean for development. Request your invite to Place’s ‘Delivering in Uncertain Times’ breakfast during UKREiiF.

You can find the full election results for the North West below.

Greater Manchester

Bolton

Bolton continues to have no party majority. Reform picked up nine seats in the election, while the Green Party won three. Labour lost five of the seven seats it had up for election – including that of Leader Cllr Nick Peel, while Conservatives lost four. After the election, the makeup of the council is 20 Labour, 11 Conservative, 11 independents/other, 10 Reform, five Liberal Democrat, and three Green.

Bury

Labour retained a majority in Bury. Compared to the rest of Greater Manchester, Labour did very well in Bury where the party only lost one of the eight seats up for election. Reform picked up five, most of which had been Conservative. After the election, the makeup of the council is 30 Labour, 11 independent/other, six Reform, and three Conservative.

Manchester

Labour retained a majority in Manchester, however the party was ravaged by the Green Party. Labour lost 24 of the 30 seats up for election, with the Greens claiming 17 of those. Reform took the remaining seven. After the election, the makeup of the council is 63 Labour, 21 Green, seven Reform, four Liberal Democrat, and one independent/other.

Oldham

There continues to be no-overall control in Oldham after the election, with Reform gaining 13 seats at the expense of Labour, Liberal Democrat, and Conservative parties. After the election, the makeup of the council is 18 Labour, 16 Reform, 16 independents/other, six Liberal Democrat, and four Conservative.

Rochdale

Labour retained overall control in Rochdale, despite losing 12 of the 14 seats up for election. Reform claimed all of those, plus one of the three Conservative seats up for grabs. After the election, the makeup of the council is 31 Labour, 15 Reform, seven Conservative, four independent/other, and three Liberal Democrat.

Salford

Labour continues to hold Salford, despite losing 13 of the 16 seats it had up for election. Reform won 13 seats, while the Green Party secured three. After the election, the makeup of the council is 34 Labour, 14 Reform, six Conservative, three Green, one Liberal Democrat, and one independent/other.

Stockport

Liberal Democrats are now firmly in control of Stockport, taking the council out of no-overall control for the first time in 15 years. The party picked up two seats at the election from Labour, which lost five of the seven seats it had up for election. After the election, the makeup of the council is 33 Liberal Democrat, 14 Labour, nine independent/other, four Green, two Reform, and one Conservative.

Tameside

Labour lost its overall majority in Tameside for the first time in 47 years after losing 16 of the 17 seats the party had up for election. These were all picked up by Reform, which also grabbed the two Conservative seats up for election. The result is a council in no-overall control. After the election, the makeup of the council is 25 Labour, 19 Reform, eight independent/other, and five Conservative.

Trafford

Labour retained its overall majority in Trafford, losing six seats that were picked up equally by Conservatives, Greens, and Reform. After the election, the makeup of the council is 35 Labour, 12 Conservative, seven Green, seven Liberal Democrat, and two Reform.

Wigan

Labour may still be the power in control at Wigan, but it was dealt quite the blow during the election. All 22 seats up for election were lost by the party to Reform, which also picked up a Conservative and Independent seat. After the election, the makeup of the council is 42 Labour, 25 Reform, and eight independent/other.

Lancashire

Blackburn with Darwen

Labour lost its overall majority in Blackburn with Darwen, alongside 11 of the 13 seats that were up for election. The council now has no-overall control. Reform won nine seats, while independents and smaller parties took six seats. After the election, the makeup of the council is 20 Labour, 17 independent/other, nine Reform, and five Conservative.

Burnley

Burnley continues to have no party majority, but Reform officially has the most councillors after winning 11 seats on Thursday, mostly from Labour.  Labour wasn’t the only party to experience loss, although it lost the most seats (7) – Liberal Democrats, Conservatives, and the Green Party all came back with fewer numbers than previous. After the election, the makeup of the council is 12 Reform, 10 independent/other, 10 Labour, six Liberal Democrat, four Conservative, and three Green.

Chorley

Labour retained its majority in Chorley, despite losing eight seats – seven of which were picked up by Reform. The Green Party gained one seat. After the election, the makeup of the council is 29 Labour, seven Reform, four Conservative, one Green, one independent/other.

Hyndburn

Labour lost its overall majority with Hyndburn entering no-overall control. Reform picked up eight seats at the expense of Labour and the Conservatives. After the election, the makeup of the council is 17 Labour, eight Reform, eight Conservative, one independent/other, and one Green.

Pendle

Pendle continues to have no overall majority, but the real shake-up was the loss of seat for Leader Cllr David Whipp, a Liberal Democrat whose seat was won by Reform’s Glenn Whittaker by just seven votes. Reform won a total of four seats in Pendle. Another four were won by independents and smaller parties. These all came mostly at the expense of Labour, which lost all three seats it previously had on the council, and the Conservative Party, which lost four. After the election, the makeup of the council is 13 independent/other, eight Conservative, seven Liberal Democrat, and five Reform.

Preston

Labour lost its overall majority in Preston, leaving the city council in no-overall control. The party of Keir Starmer lost six of the 10 seats up for grabs. Reform picked up five. Liberal Democrats gained two seats and retained three others, leaving them as the party with the second-most seats. After the election, the makeup of the council is 22 Labour, 14 Liberal Democrat, five Reform, there Conservative, two Green, and two independent/other.

West Lancashire

There continues to be no overall majority in West Lancashire. The election saw Labour dealt a hefty blow, losing all nine of its seats up for grabs. There were picked up by independents/smaller parties and Reform. After the election, the makeup of the council is 13 independent/other, 13 Labour, 12 Conservative, seven Reform.

Liverpool City Region

Halton

Labour held tight onto Halton, despite only keeping two of the 17 seats it had up for election. Reform won 16 seats, picking up the 15 lost by Labour and the only Conservative place. After the election, the makeup of the council is 32 Labour, 16 Reform, three Liberal Democrat, and three independent/other.

Knowsley

Labour retains control of Knowsley after the local elections this year, despite losing six of the 10 seats that were up for grabs. Those seats were picked up by Reform, which claimed four, and independents or smaller parties, which claimed two. After the election, the makeup of the council is 24 Labour, eight Green, six independent/other, four Reform, three Liberal Democrat.

Sefton

Labour retained control of Sefton after an all-out election, keeping 36 seats but losing 15. The Conservative Party will not have a councillor in Sefton after losing all four of its seats. After the election, the makeup of the council is 36 Labour, 17 Liberal Democrat, five independent/other, five Reform, and three Green.

St Helens

Reform swept the all-out election in St Helens, gaining 34 seats to be the party with overall control. Those seats came largely at the expense of Labour, which lost 25 seats and is now down to just two councillors, and the Greens, who lost all six of theirs. After the election, the makeup of the council is 34 Reform, six independent/other, three Liberal Democrat, two Labour, and one Conservative.