UK Local Elections 2022

[Filuwaúrdjan]

(and that random Barnsley ward).  But that's far from being the general story in England outside London, even in "Red Wall" type areas.

And notably in every other ward there (including others where they polled well last year) they've fallen back on last year, and often pretty sharply.

[CumbrianLefty]

Though a dishonourable mention also to the Labour "insider" who seemed to think Labour's failure to make more progress in places like Bolton is down to "long Corbyn".

Yep, in the pubs of Little Lever and Hulton they think of little else.

(and nothing to do with Labour running one of the most dreadful councils in the country for so long)

[Filuwaúrdjan]

Much of the punditry on these results has somehow managed to be even worse than usual.

In part because it's harder. Much of the results are not due to 'Brexit' but wider demographic cleavages in age and geography. But that requires engagement with why, that can't be brushed off with 'elites' or 'wokes' or arising 'red walls'.

It isn't even that: they've not done well even where they're insisting that they have. Labour topped the poll in Grimsby despite being obliterated there last year (miles behind, not a seat won). But, sure, things are going great in The Red Wall!

[Filuwaúrdjan]

Though a dishonourable mention also to the Labour "insider" who seemed to think Labour's failure to make more progress in places like Bolton is down to "long Corbyn".

Yep, in the pubs of Little Lever and Hulton they think of little else.

(and nothing to do with Labour running one of the most dreadful councils in the country for so long)

Yeah, it's similar to continued bad results in Wirral a few miles away and I'm going to presume Oldham (which is the standout poor result really). There's no need to spin these things when there are plenty of good results on 2021 in such places all over the place! But the Little Lever etc. ward they lost I think the incumbent elected as Labour councillor was running against them as an independent?

[Secretary of State Liberal Hack]

Though a dishonourable mention also to the Labour "insider" who seemed to think Labour's failure to make more progress in places like Bolton is down to "long Corbyn".

Yep, in the pubs of Little Lever and Hulton they think of little else.

(and nothing to do with Labour running one of the most dreadful councils in the country for so long)

The person who coined the term long corbyn should be named and shamed.

[JimJamUK]

Comparisons with 2021 are really not positive for them at all.

Yeah, the swings to Labour since 2021 are very encouraging for them, especially in some of the most pro-Brexit areas (Dudley, Nuneaton + Bedworth, Hartlepool etc). Individual cases can be written off based on council popularity etc, but there does seem to be a general picture of Labour getting the biggest swings in some of the places that saw the biggest swings to the Conservatives in 2021. Swing voters gonna swing...

[Torrain]

Still processing what all these results mean, but there’s a part of my brain which just wants to make a bunch of “Ed Davy, electoral titan” jokes. Because somehow, he’s managed to catch the right political wind, and drag them back into their strongest form - viable, sensible protest party with middle class appeal.

https://mobile.twitter.com/SamCoatesSky/status/1522552298949513217

[Torrain]

More Scottish councils coming in. The Northern and Western Isles remain fairly stagnant (no change in composition at all in the Hebrides), with the addition of a single Green and Labour member the only change in Shetland, and the Independents Group remain largely unchallenged.
 
Stirling is done, and looks pretty typical, with light SNP and Conservative losses, slight Labour gains. Seems likely that the SNP-Labour coalition will continue, with an increased majority.

[CumbrianLefty]

People should remember that Labour's slightly underwhelming results in Gtr Manchester this time may be due partly to Andy Burnham not being on another ballot paper, as was the case last year.

[Oryxslayer]

Lib-Dems apparently have won the big new Somerset Council - the Tories held its former pieces. This in addition to the large losses to Lib-Dems in areas like Tunbridge Wells, Huntingdonshire, and Wokingham  really speaks to a serious dissatisfaction among the Conservative base - but not in areas where Labour have traditional support.

[Filuwaúrdjan]

People should remember that Labour's slightly underwhelming results in Gtr Manchester this time may be due partly to Andy Burnham not being on another ballot paper, as was the case last year.

Yes - the results there last year were generally better than average as well. A clear coat-tails effect.

[Secretary of State Liberal Hack]

Can someone please explain what a unitary authority is and why a bunch of new ones were established ? Wikipedia is just leaving me confused.

[CumbrianLefty]

Lib-Dems apparently have won the big new Somerset Council - the Tories held its former pieces. This in addition to the large losses to Lib-Dems in areas like Tunbridge Wells, Huntingdonshire, and Wokingham  really speaks to a serious dissatisfaction among the Conservative base - but not in areas where Labour have traditional support.

That is also a generalisation tbh, you mean *some* areas.

[Filuwaúrdjan]

What everyone needs to understand is that when media reporting disagrees with what old hands say here, it is the media who are wrong

[YL]

Lib Dems take the new Westmorland & Furness unitary, partly thanks to an absolutely storming performance in Tim Farron's constituency, but also with some very good results in the Eden area.

[Filuwaúrdjan]

Labour only down one seat on 2018 in Cannock Chase district. If you're aware what things looked like there last year you'll see why this is worth noting...

[Oryxslayer]

Labour have gained Worthing and Crawley.

[CumbrianLefty]

Lib Dems take the new Westmorland & Furness unitary, partly thanks to an absolutely storming performance in Tim Farron's constituency, but also with some very good results in the Eden area.

Very possible the Tories end up third in seats here.

[🦀🎂🦀🎂]

Can someone please explain what a unitary authority is and why a bunch of new ones were established ? Wikipedia is just leaving me confused.

The 70s local government reforms introduced two tier local government throughout Great Britain: metropolitan counties and boroughs in the larger urban conglomerates, counties and districts in the rest of the country. They had split roles, so the districts would handle rate payment and the counties would handle planning. gradually the trend has been to merge the two tier districts into single authorities: thatcher killed the metropolitan counties and London's council for largely political reasons, leaving the boroughs as the sole source of power. Since then almost every government has gradually tried to merge as many of the two tier councils into single unitary authorities with all the power of the both (even as local government itself has got less power). So normally if q council has ran itself into the ground, national government makes its move to turn them into single councils.

[YL]

Lib Dems take the new Westmorland & Furness unitary, partly thanks to an absolutely storming performance in Tim Farron's constituency, but also with some very good results in the Eden area.

Very possible the Tories end up third in seats here.

Certain.  Labour have 14, they have 10, and there are only three seats left to declare.

[Oryxslayer]

Lib-Dems surge in South Cambridgeshire, and win the Watford mayor with a majority, so no runoff needed.

Wrexham swings hard against the Tories and the Indies, to the benefit of Labour and PC. PC also surging in their stronghold of Gwynedd.

[JimJamUK]

Labour only down one seat on 2018 in Cannock Chase district. If you're aware what things looked like there last year you'll see why this is worth noting...

A similar (though probably less chaotic) story in many similar areas.

[Filuwaúrdjan]

PC also surging in their stronghold of Gwynedd.

Most seats are either uncontested or functionally so (i.e. hopeless paper candidates or random cranks only) because all opposition organisation has collapsed, so this isn't meaningful. The single Labour seat isn't the same as last time: that was in the village of Bethel but the ward has been merged into a larger one with Y Felinheli, the incumbent stood down and there was no new Labour candidate (but see above). The single Labour seat this time is a new council estate dominated ward in Caernarfon.

[Filuwaúrdjan]

Labour only down one seat on 2018 in Cannock Chase district. If you're aware what things looked like there last year you'll see why this is worth noting...

A similar (though probably less chaotic) story in many similar areas.

Quite a significant story when put together, but zero chance of any attention being given to it.

[JimJamUK]

Wrexham swings hard against the Tories and the Indies, to the benefit of Labour and PC.

An area with interesting local politics and a complete Labour implosion in 2017.