LOCAL ELECTION RESULTS 2022 LIVE: Polling shows Tories could lose traditional strongholds in Wandsworth and Westminster amid a 500 seat battering as Britain heads to the polls in Boris’s first test since Partygate
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Speaking of Boris… The Prime Minister appeared in good spirits as he was pictured bringing his beloved dog Dilyn to Methodist Central Hall in Westminster to cast his vote in the local elections at 7.40am on Thursday morning.
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With just an hour to go until polling stations officially close, a brief look back at last year’s election results paints a very different picture for the Conservative Party. In 2021, the Tories gained 13 new councils and more than 2,300 councillors across the country. But will Boris Johnson still be smiling after voters take to the polls for the first time since Partygate?
Polling stations up and down the country opened their doors at 7am this morning, with faithful pups, cats and even a cow making stops with their owners to let them pick their next local leaders. Read the full story on MailOnline:
Boris Johnson’s former aide Dominic Cummings hasn’t held back in his comments regarding the Prime Minister and his party today. The SPAD-turned-blogger accused the Conservatives of being ‘politically, & organisationally rancid’ in a Twitter tirade. Read the full story on MailOnline:
Midnight Friday: First results expected. Labour is hoping to do well in Conservative-run Bolton in Greater Manchester. The Tories could make gains in Basildon in Essex. Results from Newcastle-upon-Tyne, South Tyneside and Wigan will indicate if Labour’s vote is holding up in its northern strongholds.
From 2am: Sunderland has been run by Labour since 1973 but the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats are hoping to make enough gains to leave the council in no overall control. Both Labour and the Tories are battling for control of Hartlepool and Peterborough. Stevenage in Hertfordshire could show if Labour is making gains in commuter territory.
From 3am: First key results from London. Westminster is a Labour longshot and has been run by the Conservatives continuously since 1964. In both Hammersmith & Fulham and Redbridge the Tories are fighting to hold on to a dwindling number of councillors. Elsewhere Hull is a two-way fight between Labour and the Liberal Democrats.
From 4am: Two crucial results are due from the West Midlands. The Conservatives are defending a slim majority in Dudley and a larger one in Nuneaton & Bedworth; Labour hopes to make progress on both councils. Hillingdon is another Labour longshot in London and contains within its boundary the constituency of Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
From 5am: Labour is hoping to retake Southampton from Conservative control and make gains in Derby. The Conservatives are defending Wandsworth in London which they have held since 1978.
By 7am: The final result is due from Conservative-run Barnet, Labour’s top target in London. All outstanding overnight results are also due.
Around 9am: Counting begins for a further 71 councils in England and all councils in Scotland and Wales.
From 12pm: Results likely to resume in England. The Green party is hoping to make gains in Conservative-controlled Solihull. Labour is hoping to do likewise in Tory-run Walsall. First results are also due from Scotland and for the mayoral elections in Hackney, Lewisham, Newham and Watford.
From 2pm: Two key councils in West Sussex are due to declare: Worthing, a top Labour target; and Crawley, where both the Tories and Labour are hoping to gain control. The Liberal Democrats could make gains in West Oxfordshire. East Renfrewshire is a three-way battle between the Conservatives, Labour and the SNP. First results are due from Wales.
From 3pm: Another key Conservative-Labour battleground, Newcastle-under-Lyme in Staffordshire, is due to finish counting. In Wales, Labour is looking to take control of Blaenau Gwent from a group of Independents, while Flintshire is a test of Tory popularity in an area in which they did well at the 2019 general election. Aberdeenshire will be a measure of Conservative support in Scotland, while all parties hope to pick up seats in Edinburgh
The latest polling from Electoral Calculus paints a grim picture for the Conservatives. The survey is forecasting a swing of six percent as Labour holds onto 3,500 council seats, including gains in the traditional Tory strongholds of Wandsworth and Westminster in the capital. In all, the Tories could lose more than 500 seats in a generational battering at the ballot box.
MailOnline’s Political Editor James Tapsfield shared this helpful guide as pollsters’ expectations of the new political makeup of local authorities across the UK continue to vary wildly. Read more:
Millions of voters have gone to the polls today in England, Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland with key seats up for grabs across 200 local authorities. Among the battleground sites we will be keeping an eye out for are:
Good evening and welcome to MailOnline’s live coverage of the 2022 local elections. Stay with us throughout tonight and tomorrow as we get the latest breaking news and updates.
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