Local election 2023: Prof Sir John Curtice on the results so far

The results successful those section elections which counted overnight were encouraging for Labour and troubling for the Conservatives. There was besides immoderate bully cheer for the Liberal Democrats and the Greens.

But with three-quarters of the councils counting results aboriginal connected Friday, it volition beryllium immoderate clip earlier a afloat representation emerges.

After the aboriginal results were counted overnight, Labour had made a nett summation of 119 seats and had taken power of 3 cardinal targets. These were Plymouth - with a peculiarly precocious swing, Stoke - a erstwhile Labour but pro-Brexit stronghold mislaid to the Conservatives successful 2019, and Medway.

In contrast, the Conservatives had suffered a nett nonaccomplishment of 228 councillors and mislaid 5 councils to nary wide control.

However, these numbers lone archer america who is up and who is down since the past clip astir of the seats were contested.

That was successful May 2019, erstwhile some the Conservatives and Labour were debased successful the polls.

They bash not code the large question which politicians, commentators and the nationalist privation answered - is Labour connected course, arsenic polls suggest, for a imaginable wide predetermination triumph adjacent year?

To reply that we request to look astatine votes cast.

The BBC is collecting the elaborate ward by ward voting figures successful 45 of the 230 councils wherever elections were held connected Thursday. Nearly fractional of these councils counted overnight.

After the overnight count, results successful these councils constituent to a four-point plaything from Conservative to Labour since 2019, and a 2 and a half-point plaything since past year.

Those swings are somewhat little than mightiness person been expected fixed the five-point plaything to Labour successful the nationalist polls since past year.

Labour volition beryllium peculiarly disappointed that, portion truthful acold the Conservatives are 5 points down connected 2022, their ain stock of the ballot is lone marginally up connected past year. While the rebuff from the voters to the Conservatives was unambiguous, determination whitethorn inactive beryllium a question people implicit the level of their enthusiasm for the Labour alternative.

Labour will, however, beryllium pleased that it does look to person accrued its enactment since past twelvemonth successful those wards wherever the Leave ballot was peculiarly precocious successful the 2016 referendum.

Recovering the enactment of Brexit-backing Britain has been 1 of the cardinal objectives of Sir Keir Starmer's leadership.

The Liberal Democrats proceed to conflict to registry advancement successful the wide predetermination ballot volition polls. However, they traditionally execute much powerfully successful assembly elections and were defending 1 of their champion performances successful section elections since they went into conjugation with the Conservatives successful 2010.

They volition beryllium pleased, not lone successful making a nett summation of astir 50 seats aft the overnight count, but besides successful seeing their stock of the ballot borderline up somewhat since some 2019 and past year.

The icing connected the barroom for the enactment has been the seizure of Windsor and Maidenhead, the location territory of erstwhile premier minister, Theresa May.

All successful all, the enactment whitethorn person reached a caller section predetermination precocious since entering into conjugation with the Conservatives successful 2010.

That said, the Liberal Democrats volition beryllium disappointed that, successful wards wherever they are challenging the Conservatives locally, determination is small motion truthful acold of them winning the tactical enactment of third-placed Labour supporters.

Securing specified tactical enactment could good beryllium important to the party's chances of capturing seats from the Conservatives astatine the wide election.

Many Conservatives were astir apt hoping that the section elections would suggest the party's electoral presumption was not arsenic atrocious arsenic that portrayed by the polls successful caller months.

In practice, the ballots counted overnight corroborate that the Conservatives are successful information successful heavy electoral trouble.

Any comfortableness that the enactment mightiness gully from the information that it whitethorn person mislaid little crushed to Labour than it feared is negated by the advancement recorded by the Liberal Democrats.

As a result, the enactment is astatine hazard of uncovering itself by the extremity of Friday having so suffered the 1,000 losses it was precise overmuch hoping to avoid.

Given the difficulties smaller parties typically person successful winning seats nether the first-past-the-post electoral system, it is not astonishing that truthful acold the Greens person lone made a humble summation of 30 seats.

Nevertheless, the enactment has maintained the grounds level of enactment that it won 4 years ago, and, crucially, managed to summation its stock of the ballot by a mates of points successful those wards wherever the enactment was already strongest.

Politics astatine Westminster mightiness beryllium dominated by the Conservatives and Labour, but the governmental stripes of English section authorities are alternatively much variegated.

John Curtice is Professor of Politics, Strathclyde University, and Senior Research Fellow, NatCen Social Research and The UK successful a Changing Europe. Additional investigation by Patrick English, Stephen Fisher, Robert Ford and Dan Snow.