Here is everything you need to know about when and where Yorkshire and England council election results will be declared
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In just one week, thousands of residents across Yorkshire will be casting their votes for who they want to see represent them on their council.
Seven authorities across our county are holding elections on Thursday May 7. Kirklees is hosting an all-out election, where there are 69 seats up for grabs across 23 wards.
In Calderdale, there are 54 seats available across 18 wards. In Wakefield, 63 councillors will be elected across 21 wards.
In Bradford, all 90 seats are up across 30 wards. In Leeds, a third of the seats will be elected, with 36 seats up for grabs across 33 wards.
In Barnsley, all 63 seats are up for election across 21 wards. And in Sheffield 84 new councillors – one third of the authority – will be available across 28 wards.
When polling stations shut at 10pm on Thursday, May 7 across England, Scotland and Wales, the majority of ballot boxes will be secured overnight, with counting commencing the following morning for most contests. However, some English councils will announce results during the night, offering early indications of how the parties are performing – particularly whether Labour and the Conservatives are struggling to retain seats amidst challenges from smaller parties.
Here we take a look at exactly when the results will be announced across the country. All declaration times are estimates.
10pm, Thursday 7 May
Polling stations close.
Out of the 136 English local authorities holding elections, 46 are scheduled to count and announce results overnight. The bulk of authorities will count and declare later on Friday, while a small number are set to complete on Saturday.
All Scottish Parliament and Senedd results will be counted and announced later on Friday.
1am, Friday 8 May
Most local authorities counting overnight have only a third or half of their seats being contested, meaning councils where a party currently holds a substantial majority – such as Broxbourne (Conservative) and Halton (Labour), both expected to declare around this time – are unlikely to experience a shift in overall control.
However, councils where a party holds only a narrow majority, such as Harlow (Conservative) and Redditch (Labour), which are also expected to complete counting at this time, could fall into no overall control if rival parties secure gains.
2am
Labour is protecting majorities at Hartlepool and Lincoln, both scheduled to declare results around this hour, while an early challenge for the Liberal Democrats will be whether they can maintain their slender majority at Hull.
Wigan is the first Metropolitan borough council expected to finish counting, where just a third of seats are being contested. Labour holds a sufficiently large majority here to retain control even if the party loses every seat it is defending.
3am
Salford, another major Metropolitan council in Greater Manchester, should complete counting around this time. However, like neighbouring Wigan, only a third of seats are being contested and Labour’s majority is substantial enough for the party to maintain control even if it experiences significant losses.
Both Wigan and Salford will offer early indications as to whether Reform and the Greens are succeeding in capturing Labour seats in north-west England. Less secure for Labour is Tameside, a council where it has been the largest party since 1979, but where its narrow majority could vanish in the face of a Reform surge.
Labour may also find it difficult to retain overall control of Exeter and Reading. At approximately 3.30am, Westminster is expected to become the first London council to complete its count – and the first council of the night where all seats are being contested.
Westminster remained under Conservative control continuously from the borough council’s establishment in 1964 until 2022, when Labour secured power with a slender majority.
The result here will not only provide the earliest indication of Labour’s performance in the capital, but also whether the Tories have succeeded in regaining support in one of their previous London strongholds – or if advances by smaller parties result in no overall control of the council.
4am
Hampshire is the first county council expected to complete its declarations, where the Conservatives have held majority control since 1997. In London, a complete set of results is anticipated from Ealing (Labour), Sutton (Lib Dems) and Wandsworth (Labour), with Wandsworth most likely to witness seats changing hands and any indication of growing support for the Greens.
All seats are being contested in Newcastle under Lyme and the full results should now be available, showing whether the Tories have succeeded in retaining their overall majority.
5am
Among the authorities conducting overnight counts yet to declare are six London boroughs: Bexley, Hammersmith & Fulham, Havering, Kensington & Chelsea, Merton, and Richmond upon Thames. Bexley stands as Reform’s primary target in the capital, while the party could also perform strongly in Havering.
Meanwhile, the Liberal Democrats have made progress in Merton over recent years and – alongside other parties – might secure sufficient seats from Labour this time to leave the council with no overall control.
9am
Vote counting commences for the parliamentary elections in Scotland and Wales, across 86 local authorities in England, and for the six mayoral contests.
1pm
The initial constituency results from Scotland are expected to be declared around this time, with Airdrie, Ayr and Coatbridge & Chryston potentially amongst them.
In England, the first mayoral result is due from Hackney in east London. Labour has retained the mayoralty here since its establishment in 2002, but faces a challenging battle with the Greens, who have cultivated a robust local support base and view this as one of their key targets.
The Newham mayoral contest result should also be announced around this time, representing another Labour defence.
Among the first councils expected to complete their declarations should be Manchester, where a third of seats are being contested but where Labour’s majority is so substantial it will maintain overall control even if significant losses occur.
2pm
Among the English results expected around this time are Hyndburn, Preston, Rochdale and St Helens, all currently held by Labour majorities. However, just a handful of seat changes could leave Preston and St Helens without any party holding overall control.
The Liberal Democrats will be keen to maintain their grip on Cheltenham council and hold on to the mayoralty of Watford, a position the party has retained uninterrupted since the role was established in 2002.
3pm
Scottish constituency results should be flowing in thick and fast by this point, though it will be a while before the overall picture of the parties in Holyrood becomes apparent, as the majority of these individual seats are expected to fall to the SNP.
The remaining parties stand a stronger chance of gaining seats across one of Scotland’s eight electoral regions, each returning seven additional members to Parliament through a form of proportional representation, with those outcomes not anticipated until later in the day.
The first Welsh declarations are also due around this time, where a newly adopted voting system has divided the country into 16 super-constituencies, each returning six members to the Senedd on a proportional basis according to votes cast.
The constituencies of Casnewydd Islwyn in south-east Wales, covering parts of Caerphilly and Newport, and Gwyr Abertawe in south-west Wales, encompassing areas of Swansea, are expected to be amongst the earliest to complete their counts. In London, the first of Friday’s results are expected to come in, with Labour defending significant majorities in Islington and Waltham Forest. The party faces challenges from the Greens and independents in the former, while Reform poses a threat in the latter.
Labour also has slimmer majorities to defend in Knowsley and Leeds, though only a third of seats are contested at both councils. Notably, Labour has held Knowsley without interruption since 1973.
In contrast, all seats are up for grabs in Solihull, where the Conservatives are defending a wafer-thin majority.
The mayoral result from Lewisham is anticipated around this time – a position Labour has held continuously since the role was established in 2002, but one which the Greens are also targeting.
4pm
The pace of results is set to quicken, with roughly 40 councils in England expected to complete their counts within the next few hours.
Labour has commanded a majority at Sunderland continuously since the council was formed in its current guise in 1973, though this could be under threat if Reform manage to rack up victories in one of their prime targets outside London.
Full results are also anticipated from Barnsley and Gateshead – two further Labour strongholds since 1973 where every seat is being contested – alongside other Labour-majority councils at Bury, Crawley, Greenwich, Ipswich, Trafford and Wolverhampton. The Conservatives will discover whether they have retained their majorities in the county councils of Suffolk and West Sussex, while the mayoral result from Croydon is also expected, representing yet another Tory defence.
5pm
A number of London councils currently under Labour control are set to complete their counts, amongst them Barnet, where the Tories are hoping to wrestle back control; Hackney, a prime target for the Greens; and Redbridge, where Reform and independent candidates are looking to make inroads.
Labour will also find out whether it has succeeded in holding its majority in Coventry, Milton Keynes, Sandwell and Sefton, all of which have a full complement of seats up for grabs.
Two county councils are expected to have their full results confirmed by this point, both currently under Tory control and where Reform poses the greatest threat: Essex and Norfolk.
In Scotland, the first members returned under the regional vote system should be declared by now, offering smaller parties – particularly the Greens and Reform – their best opportunity for success.
6pm
The mayoral result for the London borough of Tower Hamlets is anticipated, with Lutfur Rahman of the Aspire party bidding for another term in office.
Two newly established local authorities, East Surrey and West Surrey, should complete their declarations, and will function as “shadow” councils until they formally replace Surrey county council in 2027. Additional declarations from London may deliver further mixed results for Labour in the boroughs of Newham and Lambeth, while outcomes for all 101 seats in Birmingham are expected to be finalised: England’s largest council, which appears set to shift from a Labour majority to no overall party control.
7pm
The final English results of the day will include Bromley in London, where the incumbent Conservatives will be hoping to maintain their majority against a challenge from Reform, and Calderdale in West Yorkshire, where Labour is protecting a very narrow majority.
All Scottish and Welsh results are scheduled for announcement by Friday evening, although counting may continue late into the night.
9am, Saturday 9 May
Counting proceeds at four councils due to complete their declarations today: Bradford, Croydon, Lewisham and Tower Hamlets.
4pm
A complete set of results should be available for Bradford, Croydon and Lewisham.
Labour is defending a wafer-thin majority in Bradford and faces challenges from multiple directions, including Reform, the Greens and independents, while in Lewisham the party holds a substantial majority but the Greens are anticipating gains in another of their priority London targets.
Croydon will be a tight contest and the council could remain hung with no party achieving overall control.
6pm
Tower Hamlets is expected to be the final council to complete its results declaration, with the Aspire party aiming to replicate its 2022 electoral success and secure an outright majority of seats.
