Kemi Badenoch has claimed that the Conservatives are “coming back” after winning back Westminster council from Labour in London, despite her party suffering significant losses throughout England in Thursday’s local elections. The party also saw off a threat from Reform UK in Bexley, holding the council and increasing majorities.
However, the Tories suffered a series of losses in Essex, where Badenoch herself is an MP, losing 41 seats while Reform gained 52. In Havering, the Conservatives were wiped out, with Reform taking 39 of 55 seats. Reform also took control of Suffolk county council from the Conservatives and made gains in Brentwood and North East Lincolnshire. A further blow came in Hampshire, where the Conservatives lost control of the council for the first time since 1997.
Speaking to party activists in Westminster, Badenoch said the local outcome was proof that “Conservatives are coming back” and cited “great results” in Wandsworth, Fareham, and Bexley. However, on Friday night the Tories were the largest party in Wandsworth but the council was under no overall control.
Bernard Jenkin, the Conservative MP for Harwich and North Essex, called heavy Tory losses in Essex “mortifying” after Reform ended the Conservatives’ 25-year reign at the county council. He said it would be “interesting to see how Reform actually run Essex”, adding that in Kent, where Reform won outright control last year, the Conservative vote had recovered. Asked about a possible pact with Reform, Jenkin said it would depend on polling status as the election approached.
Prof Tony Travers of the London School of Economics noted that both Conservatives and Labour performed better in London than elsewhere, emphasising the capital’s unique political landscape. Political analyst Peter Kellner said the Conservatives had done better than in last year’s local elections, with a loss rate of about 44% compared to 68% in 2024, but were still “way behind Reform”.
