Bradford Council 2026 election results

The local elections for Bradford Council on Thursday 7 May were nothing short of historic, with the psychodrama of national politics appearing to have more of an influence at the ballot box than the actual record of councillors and, in particular, the executive this time around.

Whatever the actual, individual reasons for why people voted the way they did, one thing is certain – the rule book doesn't apply anymore across the district. This is no longer politics as we know it. Voters are more fragmented, unruly and dissenting than ever before.

Labour, which had a majority, was rejected. As expected, again taking into account the national mood, Reform UK came out on top. It was an impressive election for the party – they went from zero councillors to 29.

The Conservatives, surprisingly, ended up with more councillors than they had prior to last week's election (18 compared to 14, a number which had included an independent). Locally then, the party has much to celebrate. Nationally, however, the story is different.

They lost 563 seats, continuing a recent trend of decline locally. The party lost 674 councillors in 2025, 474 in 2024, 1,063 in 2023 and 336 in 2022. They were last up in 2021, when they gained 235 new councillors.

In some ways, the results of the local elections across the district of Bradford on Thursday 7 May demonstrated the significant power that the electorate has in disrupting the status quo when mainstream politics at a central (for the most part) and local level fails to deliver meaningful change for ordinary people year after year.

Not that it necessarily works in their favour. Bradford voted to leave the EU, which has been a disaster. In fact, as in other deprived parts of the country, Brexit has set the district back considerably.

Yet, it seems, many voters who backed the leave campaign have come out for Reform UK, despite it being led by Nigel Farage, one of the most influential and Europsceptic politicians of his generation, who played a pivotal role in making Brexit happen.

Likewise, Labour locally has, in part, been punished for not only the mistakes made by the party in Number 10, but also the damaging policies of austerity implemented by the Conservative government in the 2010s, which drastically reduced the spending power of local authorities (by almost a quarter between 2010 and 2020, according to the Institute for Government). Politics is long but memory is short.

Not that the now former Labour executive was without its criticisms, from the way it managed the council's finances – it was at risk of declaring itself bankrupt in 2023 – to the "inadequate" way it ran children's services (which resulted in responsibility for it being taken off the council and handed to an independent trust).

Next up for Bradford Council and its councillors is the annual council meeting on Tuesday 19 May. As the local authority has noted, it might not be so straightforward:

"At each annual meeting the council has a number of appointments to make including the appointment of the leader of the council. In the past nominations have been secured and voted on without any competition from other candidates. It is possible that situation may not persist, particularly in a multi-party chamber with no ruling majority.

"If there were more than one nomination for an appointment the current arrangements require a vote on each nomination separately. Any candidate who secures a majority on a vote for their nomination would be successful. However, it is possible that no candidate secures the majority of the council on separate votes, which would leave the council without an appointee."

There is a way around this, which we will spare you the detail of. Instead, you can read all about the current composition of the council, some of our initial thoughts on what the election means and a ward-by-ward recap of the elections with some wider context.

Bradford Council's current composition as of May 2026

The new composition of Bradford Council is as follows:

➡️ Reform UK: 29 seats (23% of vote)
🔵 Conservatives: 18 seats (17%)
🔴 Labour: 18 seats (21%)
🟢 Green Party: 9 seats (21%)
🟣 Your Bradford Independent group: 9 seats (9%)
⚪️ Independents: 4 seats (5%)
⚪️ Undeclared: 3 seats*
🟠 Lib Dems: 1 seat (3%)

The makeup of the council prior to the 2026 local elections was:
🔴 Labour: 47 seats
🔵 Conservatives: 14 seats
🟢 Green Party: 10 seats
🟣 Your Bradford Independent group: 9 seats
🟠 Lib Dems: 5 seats
⚪️ Independents: 4 seats

The results have left the council under no overall control. The last time the Bradford local authority was hung was between 2000 and 2014. Prior to that, there was no majority from 1988 to 1990 and from 1982 to 1986.

*The election for Idle and Thackley was delayed following the passing of councillor Jeanette Sunderland. It will now take place in June but the result won't change the overall outcome – Reform UK will still be significantly short of the 46 seats needed to secure a majority.

There is also likely to be a by-election for Clayton and Fairweather Green, after the Reform UK candidate Daniel Devaney told the Telegraph & Argus this month that he was no longer standing. He told the local paper:

"I'm not standing now as a candidate for Clayton and Fairweather Green. There's only 2 standing now so I've lost my youngest son for nothing but that's my fault ...

" I won't be here for the elections - I will be on holiday and to tell you the truth I'm not really bothered no."

This followed revelations by HOPE not hate that he had posted extreme comments on social media, including one where he reportedly said "... the Muslims are innocent my a***. Isreal is fighting on 3 fronts. If I was them I'd just blast them all of the face of the earth. Pure scum".

Despite the unsavoury nature of some of his social media posts, 1,387 residents in Clayton and Fairweather Green still voted him in. In fact, Devaney received the highest percentage of votes in the ward, along with fellow Reform UK candidate and now councillor Richard Brown.

A new era of right-wing local politics

The results of the 2026 Bradford Council elections reflect a sizeable shift away from both the left and the centre of politics towards the right, mirroring a similar pattern that has unfolded nationally with Reform UK ending up with 1,453 seats in England.

Well, at least under the first-past-the-post system. When it comes to the percentage of votes, the split among voters across the district of Bradford is a little more even between Reform (23%) and Labour and the Greens (21% respectively), with the Conservatives (18%) and the independents collectively (14%) trailing behind (though still mustering a decent share of votes).

The Liberal Democrats have so far received 3% of the total vote share, though their stronghold of Idle & Thackley was not contested. If it goes their way, then it will certainly bump up their numbers. They will, however, remain a very small party.

The leadership of the council has yet to be announced, but a Reform UK and Conservative coalition appears to be the most likely outcome. According to the BBC, Rebecca Poulson, the leader of the Conservatives on Bradford Council, hasn't ruled out working with Reform UK, caveating that she wouldn't tolerate "any still stuff".

"There's no plans at the moment," she was quoted as saying. "People voted for us to be Conservatives. There might be some things we agree on but there are also thing we don't agree on, we'll have to look at individual decisions as and when."

How local politicians responded to the results of the election

We've rounded-up some comments made following the 2026 Bradford Council local elections, from councillors now past and present to MPs and the mayor the of West Yorkshire.

Labour

Susan Hinchcliffe, former Labour leader of Bradford Council:

"This is a national swing, and you can't beat a national swing. They [the electorate] wanted to send a message nationally – and they have done that and we're seeing that replicated throughout the country. We're proud of what we've achieved ... which would never be achieved without Bradford Labour councillors."

Imran Hussain, Labour MP for Bradford East:

"These results are disastrous. The hope of real change that people placed in Labour has been squandered by terrible political choices ... We will not stop Farage by trying to out-Reform Reform. We stop him by rebuilding a broad, progressive coalition rooted in real Labour values: fairness, dignity, public services and standing up for working people."

Reform UK

Ian Eglin, Reform UK councillor for Baildon:

"Bradford has been declining as a city for some time and we want to change direction. I think that's the same with the whole country. I think the whole country needs a change. And I think what's going on here and what's going on in the rest of the country is reflective of the change that people want."

Sally Birch, Reform UK councillor for Windhill and Wrose:

"I think Bradford is sending out a clear signal that it is ready for something different – and that is hopefully what me and whoever else gets elected over the course of this process can deliver to Bradford ... we feel that our constituents want us to take seriously their personal challenges."

Conservatives

Robbie Moore, Conservative MP for Keighley and Ilkley:

"We are heading into worrying times across the Bradford District - but I am delighted we now have a united team and a stronger voice to stand up to Bradford, and fight our corner. We will always be your voice, not Bradford’s - and will work hard, around the clock, for you, always."

Greens

Matt Edwards, leader of the Green Party on Bradford Council and councillor for Holme Wood & Bierley:

"Reform won here in Bradford. Let that sink in. And the Conservatives who have spent weeks telling people to vote for them to keep reform out are getting ready to do a deal and hand Reform control of our council. The betrayal is breathtaking ... Only the Green Party are standing in Reform's way – and we're proving time and time again we can win."

Ilkley Green Party:

"Despite receiving a record number of Green votes for a district council election in Ilkley, it was not enough to overcome the Conservatives. Particularly disappointing was the loss to the residents of this ward, for now, of the services of Ros Brown as a district councillor ... a dedicated and hardworking representative and a tireless advocate for the people of our communities."

Breakdown of how each ward voted

Airedale

Airedale is a new ward. It was formerly part of the Craven ward, which was represented by three Green councillors before the elections. It has previously voted for the Conservatives.

Baildon

Prior to the 2026 election, Baildon was represented by three Conservatives. Labour picked up 38% and 41% as the runner-up in 2024 and 2023 respectively.

Bingley East

This is a new ward. It was previously most of the now former Bingley ward. It had two independent councillors and one Labour councillor before Thursday 7 May. The Conservatives came in second place in 2024 and 2023 (28% and 40%) and won the seat back in 2019.

Bingley West

Bingley West is mainly made up of what was Bingley Rural. The election of three Conservatives represented no change for what remains a Tory stronghold.

Bolton and Undercliffe

Although an independent was elected in 2024 – the former Lib Dem MP David Ward – Bolton and Undercliffe has in recent years voted in Labour. Prior to that, it was a Lib Dem favourite.

Bowling & Barkerend

Business as usual at this election for Labour for Bowling & Barkerend, which had, apart from 2024, when an independent was elected, been a reliable ward for Labour since 2011.

Bradford Moor

There were two Labour councillors and one Lib Dem councillor in place before last week's elections, with both parties enjoying electoral success here. Support for independents here represents a big change for a ward that has seen-sawed between the two centre-left parties...

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