Overview

• England’s May 1 local elections will decide 1,641 council seats, six mayoralties, and the Runcorn & Helsby parliamentary by-election.
• Reform UK, led by Nigel Farage, is projected to win hundreds of council seats and challenge Labour in traditional strongholds.
• Labour faces backlash for cutting winter fuel payments for most pensioners, a key issue influencing voter sentiment.
• Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch has ruled out a national coalition with Reform UK but allows local-level pacts in councils without clear control.
• Labour plans to unveil a post-election immigration white paper aimed at curbing legal migration, a move seen as a response to Reform’s rise.