Explainer
Your council-by-council guide to the local elections in the ITV Anglia region
Voters will be heading to the polls on Thursday 2 May in the final widespread test of public opinion ahead of the next general election.
In the ITV Anglia region, 486 council seats are up for election across 18 local councils. There will also be a number of council by-elections, parish council elections and a vote for new police and crime commissioners in every police force area.
In the Anglia region, there are a total of 1,695 candidates standing in the council elections.
452 Conservative candidates standing in 93% of the seats
422 Labour candidates standing in 87% of the seats
306 Liberal Democrat candidates standing in 63% of the seats
250 Green candidates standing in 51% of the seats
63 Independent candidates are standing representing 13% of the seats
46 Reform UK candidates standing in 9% of the seats
156 candidates representing other parties are also standing in these council elections
Here you can find a council-by-council breakdown of each of the local authorities in the Anglia region with elections in May 2024.
BASILDON
The Conservatives have had a working majority in Basildon since 2021 and now have a majority of eight seats. The last time Labour had an overall majority on the council was between 1996 and 2000.
In the May 2023 local elections the Conservatives won a 39% share of the vote compared to a 29% share for Labour.
There have been boundary changes in Basildon meaning the whole council is being elected instead of the usual third. There will be 42 councillors elected - the same as now.
BRENTWOOD
Gains by the Liberal Democrats in the 2023 local elections deprived the Conservatives of the overall majority they won back in 2015 on Brentwood Council in Essex.
The Lib Dems need three more gains to take power on the council they last ran with a majority in 2003. They took a 43% share of the vote in 2023 with the Conservatives winning 37% and Labour 15%.
There have been boundary changes in Brentwood meaning the whole council is being elected instead of the usual third. There will be 39 councillors elected - two more than now.
CAMBRIDGE
Labour has been in power on Cambridge City Council since 2014 and currently has an overall majority of eight seats. Nine of the 14 seats up for election this year are held by Labour with the Liberal Democrats defending four and the Greens one.
The Liberal Democrats last had an outright majority in Cambridge in 2012. The Conservatives have a single councillor and last had a majority in the university city in 1979.
14 of the 42 councils seats are up for election in May 2024
CASTLE POINT
Castle Point is an Independent-run council with a joint administration of the People’s Independent Party and the Canvey Island Independent Party.
The Conservatives lost their overall majority in 2021 after nearly two decades in power. Labour currently have no councillors in Castle Point but had enough between 1995 and 2003 to secure more than half the seats.
There have been boundary changes in Castle Point meaning the whole council is being elected instead of the usual third. There will be 39 councillors elected - two fewer than now.
COLCHESTER
One of England’s newest cities, Colchester is usually split three ways between the Conservatives, Labour and the Liberal Democrats. No party has won a majority in annual elections in Colchester since 1996.
The Conservatives are the largest single party but the Liberal Democrats currently run a minority administration with support from Labour and the Greens.
18 of the 51 council seats are up for election in May 2023
EPPING FOREST
Epping Forest District Council has been run by the Conservatives since 2007 and no other party has had an overall majority there since the council was formed in 1973.
At last year’s local elections when one-third of the seats were being contested, the Tories took a 48% share of the votes although that did represent a decline in share compared to 2019.
There have been boundary changes in Epping Forest meaning the whole council is being elected instead of the usual third. There will be 54 councillors elected - four fewer than now.
HARLOW
Harlow used to be a solid Labour council until the turn of the century and since then it has flipped between Conservative and Labour. The Tories snatched control from Labour in 2021 and currently have a majority of nine.
There are all-out elections in Harlow this year because all the ward boundaries have been adjusted to allow for population changes. It means three councillors are being elected in each of the 11 wards.
Last year Labour won six of the 11 old wards in Harlow and the Conservatives won five.
The boundary changes mean there will still be a total of 33 councillors in Harlow - the same as now.
IPSWICH
Ipswich Borough Council has been Labour for most of its history and the party has enjoyed an overall majority since 2011. That majority currently stands at 17.
In last year’s local elections, Labour gained a ward from the Conservatives and took a 43% share of the vote overall in all council wards. The Tories were on 34% and the Liberal Democrats on 12%.
The Conservatives had an overall majority in Ipswich briefly from 1976-79.
18 of the 48 council seats are up for election in May 2024.
MILTON KEYNES
Milton Keynes is a unitary authority meaning that it runs all the local services in its area rather than local government being split across two councils like it is in most other parts of the Anglia region.
It is one of the newest cities in the country and has been run in turn by Labour, Conservative and Liberal Democrats. It is currently a joint Lab / Lib Dem administration but Labour are within two seats of gaining an overall majority.
Labour last had an overall majority in Milton Keynes between 1996 and 2000.
At the next General Election, Milton Keynes will have three MPs instead of two and all three of the seats are Labour targets that the party must win to stand a chance of forming the next government.
19 of the 57 council seats are up for election in May 2024.
NORTH HERTFORDSHIRE
The Conservatives lost their overall majority in North Hertfordshire in 2019 and since then the council has been hung. Labour is currently the largest party but is seven short of an overall majority.
In the May 2023 local elections, the Liberal Democrats took more votes overall than either Labour or the Conservatives.
There have been boundary changes in North Herts meaning the whole council is being elected instead of the usual third. There will be 51 councillors elected - two more than now. In the future, North Hertfordshire will elect all its councillors once every four years.
NORWICH
Norwich City Council has traditionally been Labour and the party held office from 1973 until 2002 when they lost control to the Liberal Democrats.
In recent years it has been a straight-forward two horse race between Labour and the Greens in most city wards and Labour has enjoyed an overall majority for most of the time.
After an internal re-selection dispute in 2023 several Labour councillors left the party and are now sitting as Independents. That means Labour doesn’t currently have an outright majority but it is still running the council.
13 of the 39 council seats are up for election in May 2024.
PETERBOROUGH
Peterborough is a unitary council where all the parties struggle to maintain an overall majority for any length of time so quite often informal pacts and arrangements are made between different groups.
The Conservatives were running a minority administration until November 2023 when they lost a vote of no confidence. The council is now run by a group called Peterborough First led by a former Tory councillor even though they have only 10 of the 60 council seats.
At the General Election, Peterborough is the Labour party’s top target in the ITV Anglia region needing a 2.5% swing to win although the parliamentary constituency is much smaller than the council area.
23 of the 60 council seats are up for election in May 2024.
ROCHFORD
Rochford in Essex has been hung since 2022 when the Conservative lost power. It is currently run by a joint Independent, Liberal Democrat and Green administration.
The Conservatives still took most votes in the area in the May 2023 local elections with a 32% share compared to 25% for the Lib Dems and 14% for Labour.
13 of the 39 council seats are up for election in May 2024.
ST ALBANS
The Liberal Democrats stormed to victory with a whopping majority of 44 on the City & District Council in 2022. The year before they had secured a majority of only two seats.
It is a council that has flipped between Tory control and Lib Dem control over its history along with periods when no party had an overall majority.
St Albans is also the only parliamentary seat in the ITV Anglia region that currently has a Liberal Democrat MP.
21 of the 56 council seats are up for election in May 2024.
SOUTHEND
The Conservatives are the biggest party on a hung unitary authority in Southend-on-Sea, which was only recently made a city. The Tories would need four net gains to win back the overall majority they lost in 2019.
Labour have been challenging strongly in the seaside city making two gains in last year’s local election. However the Conservative still took the biggest share in 2023 with 33% of the votes compared to Labour on 29%, the Lib Dems on 13% and the Greens on 9%.
Southend has an independent party called Confelicity which has contested all the wards in the city in the past few years. In 2023 they gained 3% of the votes.
17 of the 51 council seats are up for election in May 2024.
STEVENAGE
Stevenage is the only council in the ITV Anglia region on which one party has had an overall majority throughout its entire history since local government re-organisation in 1973/4.
Labour has been in control for half a century although they came close to losing their majority in 2021 when the Conservatives took a higher share of votes. Labour currently have a seemingly solid majority of nine seats currently.
There have been boundary changes in Stevenage meaning the whole council is being elected instead of the usual third. There will be 39 councillors elected - the same as now.
THURROCK
Thurrock is currently a hung council although the Conservatives had a slender overall majority from 2021.
The council was left in no overall control in February after two Tories voted against the council’s budget plans which included an 8% rise in council tax and £20 million of savings for the virtually bankrupt council.
Labour last held a working majority in Thurrock in 2014 and would need six net gains to win it back. The Conservatives need just two gains. Of the 17 council seats up for election, 11 are being defended by the Tories.
This will be the last one-third election before all-out elections begin in Thurrock in 2025.
17 of the 49 council seats are up for election in May 2024.
WELWYN HATFIELD
The Conservatives lost their overall majority in Welwyn Hatfield in May 2023 with a joint Labour and Liberal Democrat administration now running the council.
The council used to flip-flop regularly between Tory and Labour control from the 1970s until the early 2000s but was in Conservative control from 2002 until 2019.
The Conservative are still the biggest single party and took 34% of the votes in the May 2023 local elections. Labour won 31% of the votes and the Lib Dems 26%. The Greens were on 9%.
Welwyn Hatfield is the constituency of the Defence Secretary Grant Shapps.
16 of the 48 council seats are up for election in May 2024.
Want a quick and expert briefing on the biggest news stories? Listen to our latest podcasts to find out What You Need To Know