2026 Reading Borough Council election

2026 Reading Borough Council election
7 May 2026 (2026-05-07)
17 out of 48 seats to Reading Borough Council
(including 1 by-election)
25 seats needed for a majority
Registered117,445
Turnout48,407
41.2%[1] (Increase9.2%)
  First party Second party Third party
 
Leader Liz Terry Rob White Raj Singh
Party Labour Green Conservative
Last election 32 seats, 47.4% 8 seats, 20.8% 4 seats, 20.1%
Seats before 32[2] 8 3
Seats won 7 6 3
Seats after 29 11 5
Seat change Decrease 3 Increase 3 Increase 2
Popular vote 15,300 15,113 9,179
Percentage 29.2% 28.8% 17.4%
Swing Decrease 18.3% Increase 8.0% Decrease 2.7%
  Fourth party Fifth party Sixth party
 
Leader Anne Thompson Clarence Mitchell
(defeated)
Party Liberal Democrats Reform Independent
Last election 3 seats, 10.3% 0 seats, 0.5% 1 seat, 0.1%
Seats before 3 1 1
Seats won 1 0 0
Seats after 3 0 0
Seat change Steady Decrease 1 Decrease 1
Popular vote 4,158 8,592 27
Percentage 7.9% 16.4% 0.1%
Swing Decrease 2.4% Increase 15.9% Steady 0.0%
Winner of each seat at the 2026 Reading Borough Council election.
Leader before election

Liz Terry
Labour

 Leader after election

Liz Terry
Labour

The 2026 Reading Borough Council election was held on 7 May 2026, alongside the other local elections across the United Kingdom being held on the same day, to elect 17 of 48 members of Reading Borough Council.[3]

Of these, 16 seats are part of the regular election cycle, in which one-third of the council is elected in three out of every four years. The other seat contested was a vacancy in Caversham Heights, following the decision of councillor Sam Juthani to step down.[4]

At 41.2%, turnout was the highest outside of a general election since the 1991 Reading Borough Council election. The Labour Party maintained an overall majority, continuing its rule of the council since 1986 (with the exception of 2010-2011). The Green Party gained its best-ever result, enlarging its group to double digits and defeating 3 Labour lead councillors. The Liberal Democrats retained their control of Tilehurst ward but failed to make inroads elsewhere. Despite its impressive performance nationally, Reform UK failed to have a breakthrough, losing its lone seat, which it had gained through a Conservative defection.[5]

Council composition

After 2024 election Before 2026 election
Party Seats Party Seats
Labour 32 Labour 31
Green 8 Green 8
Conservative 4 Conservative 3
Liberal Democrats 3 Liberal Democrats 3
Reform 0 Reform 1
Independent 1 Independent 1
Vacant N/A Vacant 1

Changes 2024–2026:

  • January 2026: Clarence Mitchell (Conservative) defects to Reform[6]
  • March 2026: Sam Juthani (Labour) resigns – seat left vacant until 2026 election[7]

Summary

Background

In 2024, Labour retained control of the council.[8][9]

Election result

2026 Reading Borough Council election[2]
Party This election Full council This election
Candidates Seats Net Seats % Other Total Total % Votes Votes % +/−
  Labour {{{candidates}}} 7 Decrease 3 41.2 22 29 60.4 15,300 29.2 –18.2
  Green {{{candidates}}} 6 Increase 3 35.3 5 11 22.9 15,113 28.8 +8.0
  Conservative {{{candidates}}} 3 Increase 2 17.6 2 5 10.4 9,179 17.4 –2.7
  Liberal Democrats {{{candidates}}} 1 Steady 5.9 2 3 6.3 4,158 7.9 -2.4
  Reform {{{candidates}}} 0 Decrease 1 0.0 0 0 0.0 8,592 16.4 +15.9
  Independent {{{candidates}}} 0 Decrease 1 0.0 0 0 0.0 27 0.1 0.0
  Liberal {{{candidates}}} 0 Steady 0.0 0 0 0.0 51 0.1 ±0.0
  SDP {{{candidates}}} 0 Steady 0.0 0 0 0.0 29 0.1 N/A
  TUSC {{{candidates}}} 0 Steady 0.0 0 0 0.0 25 <0.0 -0.8

Incumbents

Ward Incumbent councillor Party Re-standing[4]
Abbey Karen Rowland Labour Yes
Battle Sarah Hacker Independent[a] No
Caversham Jacopo Lanzoni Labour Yes
Caversham Heights Isobel Ballsdon Conservative Yes
Sam Juthani Labour No[b]
Church Ruth McEwan Labour Yes
Coley Ellie Emberson Labour Yes
Emmer Green Clarence Mitchell Reform[c] Yes
Katesgrove Louise Keane Green Yes
Kentwood Glenn Dennis Labour Yes
Norcot Jo Lovelock Labour No
Park Rob White Green Yes
Redlands Kathryn McCann Green Yes
Southcote Deborah Edwards Labour No
Thames Adele Barnett-Ward Labour Yes
Tilehurst Meri O'Connell Liberal Democrats Yes
Whitley Rachel Eden Labour Yes

Ward results

Votes were counted overnight and the results published on the council's website on 8 May.[11]

Abbey

Abbey
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Green Jacqueline Dominguez 792 37.6 Increase24.1
Labour Karen Rowland* 683 32.5 Decrease11.7
Conservative Robert Dalton 279 13.3 Decrease18.7
Reform Paul Newton 202 9.6 N/A
Liberal Democrats Henry Wright 139 6.6 Decrease3.0
TUSC James Morgan 9 0.4 N/A
Majority 109 5.1 N/A
Turnout 2,109 32.4 Increase4.6
Registered electors 6,512
Green gain from Labour Swing Increase17.9

Battle

Battle
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Pratikshya Gurung 1,180 41.4 −22.4
Green Zoe Mann 998 35.0 +15.9
Reform Diana Whitehouse 335 11.8 N/A
Conservative Ben Blackmore 207 7.3 −3.1
Liberal Democrats John Grout 118 4.1 −2.6
Majority 182 6.4 −38.3
Turnout 2,851 38.2 +11.4
Registered electors 7,470
Labour gain from Independent Swing Decrease19.2

Caversham

Caversham
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Jacopo Lanzoni* 1,438 38.4 −16.8
Green Sam Wild 920 24.5 +9.3
Reform Jeff Lewis 600 16.0 N/A
Conservative Andrew Ballsdon 549 14.6 −2.4
Liberal Democrats Anthony Spencer 225 6.0 −4.5
SDP Bill Runacre 16 0.4 N/A
Majority 518 13.8 −24.4
Turnout 3,761 49.4 +11.0
Registered electors 7,608
Labour hold Swing Decrease13.1

Caversham Heights

Caversham Heights (2 seats due to by-election)
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Isobel Ballsdon* 1,900 44.2 +9.5
Conservative Saadia Saadat 1,218 28.3 −6.4
Labour Richard Stainthorp 1,088 25.3 −15.9
Labour Jo Musominari 1,058 24.6 −16.6
Green Danny McNamara 866 20.1 +2.6
Green Adil Khan 761 17.7 +0.2
Reform James Stothard 580 13.5 N/A
Reform Ilayda Molloy 496 11.5 N/A
Liberal Democrats Jo Ramsay 416 9.7 −15.2
Liberal Democrats Vania Costa-Krol 271 6.3 −0.3
Turnout 4,438 58.6 +12.9
Registered electors 7,575
Conservative hold
Conservative gain from Labour

Isobel Ballsdon was re-elected to the ward's regular seat. The second seat was vacant following the resignation of Labour councillor Sam Juthani, and was won by Saadia Saadat.[4]

Church

Church
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Ruth McEwan* 1,095 39.4 −19.7
Reform Matthew Reynolds 680 24.5 N/A
Green Jamie Whitham 468 16.8 +4.3
Conservative Adam Phelps 362 13.0 −8.6
Liberal Democrats Mark Cole 163 5.9 −0.9
Majority 415 14.9 −22.6
Turnout 2,780 34.0 +8.7
Registered electors 8,174
Labour hold

Coley

Coley
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Green Richard Walkem 973 33.4 Increase20.6
Labour Ellie Emberson* 964 33.1 Decrease21.7
Reform Petru Mereacre 445 15.3 N/A
Conservative John Angus 367 12.6 Decrease7.1
Liberal Democrats Christopher Ward 166 5.7 Decrease2.7
Majority 9 0.3 Decrease34.7
Turnout 2,929 41.8 Increase10.2
Registered electors 7,008
Green gain from Labour Swing Increase21.2

Emmer Green

Emmer Green
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Alex Smith 1,143 27.8 –8.9
Green Hannah Conibear 1,103 26.8 +13.5
Reform Clarence Mitchell* 805 19.6 N/A
Labour Ollie White 770 18.7 –22.1
Liberal Democrats Nishikant Gupta 290 7.1 –2.1
Majority 40 1.0 N/A
Turnout 4,117 52.6 +15.4
Registered electors 7,835
Conservative gain from Reform Swing Decrease11.2

Katesgrove

Katesgrove
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Green Louise Keane* 1,340 50.8 Increase6.1
Labour Richard Wong 604 22.9 Decrease13.9
Conservative Matthew Callow 281 10.6 Increase0.3
Reform Prabhdeep Singh 279 10.6 N/A
Liberal Democrats Sarah Dobson 109 4.1 Decrease0.8
Independent Jean Pascual 27 1.0 Decrease0.2
Majority 736 27.9 Increase20.0
Turnout 2,653 35.0 Increase5.1
Registered electors 7,591
Green hold Swing Increase10.0

Kentwood

Kentwood
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Co-op Glenn Dennis* 1,014 32.4 –15.7
Conservative David Milne-Buckley 775 24.8 –11.3
Reform Stephen Ruston 736 23.5 N/A
Green Tim Liddle 476 15.2 +5.0
Liberal Democrats Jibril al-Nabahani 127 4.1 –1.6
Majority 239 7.6 –4.4
Turnout 3,133 46.6 +11.3
Registered electors 6,720
Labour Co-op hold Swing Decrease2.2

Norcot

Norcot[12]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Alison Foster 967 35.4 –15.0
Reform Oliver Maunder 641 23.5 +15.2
Green Isobel Hoskins 558 20.4 +10.5
Conservative Kes Williams 293 10.7 –3.3
Liberal Democrats Brandon Masih 221 8.1 –5.8
Liberal Stephen Graham 51 1.9 +0.1
Majority 326 11.9 –24.5
Turnout 2,744 36.1 +7.4
Registered electors 7,598
Labour hold Swing Decrease15.1

Park

Park
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Green Rob White* 1,872 65.2 Increase7.6
Labour James Cuggy 591 20.6 Decrease13.0
Reform Stephen Ham 190 6.6 N/A
Conservative Kris Lund 149 5.2 Decrease0.6
Liberal Democrats Jassien Sabri 71 2.5 Decrease0.1
Majority 1,281 44.6 Increase20.6
Turnout 2,886 42.8 Increase4.4
Registered electors 6,741
Green hold Swing Increase10.3

Redlands

Redlands
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Green Kathryn McCann* 1,549 54.8 Increase0.9
Labour Co-op Roy Rangarirai 708 25.0 Decrease8.6
Reform Darren Seward 254 9.0 N/A
Conservative Abdoulaye Sow 179 6.3 Decrease0.3
Liberal Democrats Christopher Wilson 122 4.3 Increase0.6
TUSC Melanie Dent 16 0.6 Decrease0.9
Majority 841 29.8 Increase9.5
Turnout 2,838 40.2 Increase7.4
Registered electors 7,065
Green hold Swing Increase4.8

Southcote

Southcote
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Ulrike Magyarosy 1,032 36.0 –23.6
Reform Bev Heslin 623 21.7 N/A
Green Rosemary Croft 614 21.4 +10.5
Conservative Grace Blackmore 408 14.2 –5.1
Liberal Democrats Benjamin Sims 188 6.6 –2.7
Majority 409 14.3 –26.0
Turnout 2,875 37.1 +7.9
Registered electors 7,741
Labour hold

Thames

Thames
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Green David Clarke 1,031 39.1 Increase22.8
Labour Adele Barnett-Ward* 750 28.5 Decrease24.1
Reform Alexander Kelly 351 13.3 N/A
Conservative Jaykumar Patel 308 11.7 Decrease6.8
Liberal Democrats Christopher Burden 183 6.9 Decrease5.3
SDP James Halls 13 0.5 N/A
Majority 250 10.6 N/A
Turnout 2,640 42.4 Increase10.5
Registered electors 6,226
Green gain from Labour Swing Increase23.5

Tilehurst

Tilehurst
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal Democrats Meri O'Connell* 1,144 38.4 –13.7
Reform Steven Low 763 25.6 N/A
Labour Caroline Basden 439 14.7 –6.4
Green Caroline Hearst 343 11.5 +4.7
Conservative Raihana Rahimi 288 9.7 –9.5
Majority 381 12.8 –18.2
Turnout 2,985 41.3 +10.0
Registered electors 7,235
Liberal Democrats hold

Whitley

Whitley
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Co-op Rachel Eden* 919 34.6 –23.1
Reform Richie Sahni 612 23.0 N/A
Conservative Vani Goel 473 17.8 –3.3
Green Kathy Smith 449 16.9 +7.4
Liberal Democrats Pieter de Boiserie 205 7.7 –1.5
Majority 307 11.6 –24.9
Turnout 2,668 32.0 +8.3
Registered electors 8,346
Labour Co-op hold

Notes

  1. ↑ Originally elected for Labour, but expelled from the party in 2023, and sat as an independent for the remainder of her term.[10]
  2. ↑ Elected in 2023 to serve until 2027, but stood down early.
  3. ↑ Originally elected as a Conservative, but defected to Reform in January 2026.

References

  1. ↑ @ReadingCouncil (7 May 2026). "Verification is now complete and counting will begin shortly. Voting turn-out for #rdguk this year was 41.22%" (Tweet) – via X (formerly Twitter).
  2. 1 2 "Reading Council Composition: Latest". opencouncildata.co.uk. Open Council Data UK. Archived from the original on 7 February 2026. Retrieved 7 February 2026.
  3. ↑ Team, RBC Digital. "Elections and voting". reading.gov.uk. Retrieved 28 January 2026.
  4. 1 2 3 Aldridge, James. "Listed: all candidates for Reading council elections 2026". Reading Chronicle. Retrieved 15 April 2026.
  5. ↑ O'Hagan, Patrick; Elapatha, Nerenjana; Coles, Charlotte (8 May 2026). "Labour retain Reading and Lib Dems hold Wokingham". BBC News. Retrieved 19 July 2026.
  6. ↑ Aldridge, James (24 January 2026). "Colleagues react as Conservative in Reading defects to become first Reform UK councillor". Reading Today Online. Retrieved 2 February 2026.
  7. ↑ Boothroyd, David. "Refined win for Reform in Milford Haven". LocalCouncils.co.uk. Retrieved 7 May 2026.
  8. ↑ "LISTED: All the results from Reading's Local Elections 2024". Reading Chronicle. 3 May 2024. Retrieved 28 January 2026.
  9. ↑ "Reading result - Local Elections 2024". BBC News. Retrieved 28 January 2026.
  10. ↑ Aldridge, James (25 April 2023). "Reading councillor expelled from the Labour Party". Reading Chronicle. Archived from the original on 26 April 2023. Retrieved 16 January 2025.
  11. ↑ "Local election results 7 May 2026". Reading Borough Council. 8 May 2026. Archived from the original on 8 May 2026. Retrieved 8 May 2026.
  12. ↑ "Local election results 7 May 2026".
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