Local Council By Elections July 2019

This month saw 21,830 votes cast over 16 local authority (tier one and tier two) contests. All percentages are rounded to the nearest single decimal place. Six council seats changed hands. For comparison with June's results, see here.

Party	Number of Candidates	Total Vote	%	+/-  June	+/- July 18	Avge/ Contest	+/- Seats
Conservative	13	6,013	27.5%	-3.6%	-8.7%	401	-4
Labour	15	2,714	12.4%	-11.0%	-19.2%	181	-2
LibDem	13	8,096	37.1%	+11.2%	+22.1%	623	+5
UKIP	5	349	1.6%	+0.2%	+0.2%	70	0
Green	4	474	2.2%	-4.6%	-0.4%	119	0
SNP	0						0
PC**	3	742	3.4%	+2.9%	+0.6%	247	+1
Ind***	16	2,252	10.3%	+3.3%	+2.9%	141	0
Other****	7	1,190	5.5%	+5.5%	+1.7%	170	0

* There were no by-elections in Scotland
** There were three by-elections in Wales
*** There were five Independent clashes this month
**** Others consisted of the Brexit Party (111, 152), Communist Party of Britain (18), For Britain (166), Herefordshire It's Our County (304), Yorkshire Party (349), and the Women's Equality Party (90)

Congratulations are in order for the Liberal Democrats. Not only did they come away this month with five extra councillors, but they won the popular vote handsomely. The Tory vote more or less held up but Labour's? Oh dear. While I'm sceptical four-party politics is here to say, considering all the pollsters bar YouGov indicate a movement away from this, the surge of the LibDems is held up by this and last month's local poll tally. Yet it is far too early to say definitively things have changed at the local level, considering most seats contested in July were not Labour territory and the independents and small parties (collectively) had a better-than-normal show. A few more months like this then we'll see.

Meanwhile, there was a new entrant into the by-election fray, and that was the Brexit Party. Standing in the two Gloucester seats on the 25th, they managed 111 and 152 votes apiece, which works our at 16% and 10% respectively. In other words, where UKIP used to mostly be before their collapse after the general election. As if to rub it in, the purple party also stoof in both seats and got 17 votes between the candidacies. Surely UKIP are not long for this world now, and their place will soon be occupied by Nigel Farage's party.

4th July
Chorley BC, Ecclestone & Mawdesley, Con hold
Middlesbrough UA, Park End & Beckfield, Ind hold
Rhondda Cynon Taf UA, Rhondda, PC gain from Lab
Wiltshire UA, Trowbridge Drynham, LDem gain from Con

11th July
East Riding of Yorkshire UA, Bridlington North, LDem gain from Con
Herefordshire UA, Whitecross, Oth hold

16th July
Cardiff UA,  Cyncoed, LDem hold

18th July
Ashford BC, Downs North, Con hold
Ceredigion UA, Llanbadarn Fawr, PC hold
Daventry BC, Brixworth, LDem gain from Con
Richmond-Upon-Thames LB, Sheen, LDem hold
Wiltshire US, Westbury North, LDem hold

25th July
City of London, Farringdon Within, Ind hold
Gloucester BC, Barnwood, LDem gain from Con
Glocester BC, Podsmead, LDem gain from Lab
Hartlepool UA, Hart, Lab hold