2026 Swindon Borough Council election

2026 Swindon Borough Council election
7 May 2026 (2026-05-07)
All 57 seats to Swindon Borough Council
29 seats needed for a majority
Registered169,899
Turnout74,253
43.7% (Increase 12.7 pp)
  First party Second party Third party
 
Leader Gary Sumner Jim Robbins Sara Godwin[1]
Party Conservative Labour Reform
Last election 15 seats, 35.5% 41 seats, 50.2% 0 seats, 0.6%
Seats before 16 34 0
Seats won 23 19 14
Seat change Increase 7 Decrease 15 Increase 14
Popular vote 51,126 48,189 45,670
Percentage 29.7% 28.0% 26.5%
Swing Decrease 5.7 pp Decrease 22.2 pp Increase 25.9 pp
  Fourth party Fifth party Sixth party
 
Leader Adam Poole
(retiring)		 Tom Butcher
(defeated)
Party Liberal Democrats Green Independent
Last election 1 seat, 9.8% 0 seats, 5.0% 0 seats, 1.4%
Seats before 1 4 2
Seats won 1 0 0
Seat change Steady Decrease 4 Decrease 2
Popular vote 8,147 18,962 Did not stand
Percentage 4.7% 11.0% Did not stand
Swing Decrease 5.1 pp Increase 6.0 pp Decrease 1.4 pp
Results by ward
Leader before election

Jim Robbins
Labour

 Leader after election

Gary Sumner
Conservative
No overall control[a]

The 2026 Swindon Borough Council election took place on 7 May 2026 to elect councillors to Swindon Borough Council in Wiltshire, England. The election was on the same day as other local elections across England. All seats were contested;[2] this was the first all-out election since 2012.[3]

Prior to the election, the council was under Labour majority control.[4] At this election, the council went under no overall control. The Conservatives overtook Labour to become the largest party. They subsequently formed a minority administration. The Conservative group leader, Gary Sumner, was formally appointed as the new leader of the council at the subsequent annual council meeting on 22 May 2026 with the support of his own party and Reform UK.[5]

Background

At the previous council election, Labour kept overall majority control of the council with 41 out of 57 seats, with the Conservatives having 15 seats.[6] In 2025, four Labour councillors defected to the Green Party.[7]

New warding came into effect at these elections.[8]

Previous council composition

After 2024 election Before 2026 election Change
Party Seats Party Seats
Labour 41 Labour 34 Decrease 7
Conservative 15 Conservative 16 Increase 1
Green 0 Green 4 Increase 4
Liberal Democrats 1 Liberal Democrats 1 Steady
Independent 0 Independent 2 Increase 2

Changes 2024–2026

Name Date From To Ward Reason
Will Stone September 2024[9] Labour Vacant Rodbourne Cheney Resignation after being elected to Swindon North in the UK Parliament.
Sudha Nukana 17 October 2024[10] Vacant Conservative Gained ward from Labour in a by-election.
Matt Lodge March 2025[11] Labour Independent Haydon Wick Left the Labour Party to sit as independents.
Ian Edwards September 2025[12] Priory Vale
Sean Wilson Lydiard and Freshbrook
Repi Begum October 2025[13] Green Lydiard and Freshbrook Defected to the Green Party.
Tom Butcher St Margaret and South Marston
Ian Edwards Independent Priory Vale Joined the Green Party.
Rob Heath November 2025[14] Labour Defected to the Green Party.

Results summary

Turnout was 43.7%, well up from the 31.0% in 2024.[15][16]

No party won a majority in the Swindon Borough Council, but the Conservative Party had the highest absolute number of councillors, followed closely by the Labour Party and Reform, who had 23, 19 and 14 seats respectively. As a result, a coalition between Conservative and Labour was formed.[17][18]

2026 Swindon Borough Council election
Party This election Full council This election
Candidates Seats Net Seats % Other Total Total % Votes Votes % +/−
  Conservative {{{candidates}}} 23 Increase 7 40.4 0 23 40.4 51,126 29.7 –5.7
  Labour {{{candidates}}} 19 Decrease 15 33.3 0 19 33.3 48,189 29.0 –22.2
  Reform {{{candidates}}} 14 Increase 14 24.6 0 14 24.4 45,670 26.5 +25.9
  Liberal Democrats {{{candidates}}} 1 Steady 1.8 0 1 1.8 8,147 4.7 –5.1
  Green {{{candidates}}} 0 Decrease 4 0.0 0 0 0.0 18,962 11.0 +6.0
  TUSC {{{candidates}}} 0 Steady 0.0 0 0 0.0 159 0.1 –0.7
  Independent {{{candidates}}} 0 Decrease 2 0.0 0 0 0.0 N/A[b] N/A –1.4

Ward results

Candidates for each ward were confirmed on 9 April 2026.[19]

Badbury Park, Eldene & Liden

Badbury Park, Eldene & Liden (3 seats)
Party Candidate Votes %
Labour Co-op Mike Davies* 1,135 33.2
Labour Co-op Rebecca Banwell-Moore 1,132 33.1
Reform Simon Howard 1,021 29.8
Conservative Bazil Solomon 1,001 29.3
Labour Co-op Marianne Coyte-Grinney 997 29.1
Conservative Sally Hawson 985 28.8
Reform Gerald Rogers 975 28.5
Reform Martin Costello 968 28.3
Conservative Zachary Hawson 896 26.2
Green Emma Brits 477 13.9
Green Adrian Russell 400 11.7
Liberal Democrats Malcolm Salmon 277 8.1
Turnout 3,696 43.4
Registered electors 8,514
Labour Co-op win (new seat)
Labour Co-op win (new seat)
Reform win (new seat)

Blunsdon

Blunsdon
Party Candidate Votes %
Conservative Nick Gardiner* 558 42.9
Reform Luke Bennett 362 27.8
Labour Co-op Steffan Rick 164 12.6
Green Andrew Day 127 9.8
Liberal Democrats Jessica Frankopan 91 7.0
Majority 196 15.1
Turnout 1,305 47.4
Registered electors 2,752
Conservative win (new seat)

Broadgreen

Broadgreen
Party Candidate Votes %
Conservative Anabelle Pegado* 1,247 44.0
Labour Co-op Adorabelle Amaral-Shaikh 1,220 43.1
Conservative Miguel Vintur-Fernandes 1,196 42.2
Labour Co-op Domingos Dias* 959 33.8
Green Muhammad Hamid 347 12.2
Reform Stephen Booth 288 10.2
Reform Marcus Phillips 278 9.8
Liberal Democrats Marek Sarnowski 132 4.7
Turnout 3,004 54.7
Registered electors 5,497
Conservative win (new seat)
Labour Co-op win (new seat)

Chiseldon & Ridgeway

Chiseldon & Ridgeway (2 seats)
Party Candidate Votes %
Conservative Gary Sumner* 1,147 49.2
Conservative Matt Hinton 1,045 44.9
Liberal Democrats Liz Mearns 651 28.0
Reform Bryan Davis 481 20.7
Reform Ayesha Noureen 413 17.7
Liberal Democrats Calum Murphy 381 16.4
Green Adrian Rogers 224 9.6
Labour Steve Allsopp 197 8.5
Labour Haydar Pacci 119 5.1
Turnout 2,469 53.3
Registered electors 4,630
Conservative win (new seat)
Conservative win (new seat)

Covingham & Nythe

Covingham & Nythe (2 seats)
Party Candidate Votes %
Conservative Kevin Parry* 1,638 53.2
Conservative Barbara Parry* 1,550 50.3
Reform Michelle Read 897 29.1
Reform Casey Sherwood 825 26.8
Labour Zohaib Ali Khan 522 16.9
Labour Tomas Silberberg 501 16.3
Liberal Democrats Jim Morrish 178 5.8
TUSC Scott Hunter 50 1.6
Turnout 3,227 49.5
Registered electors 6,514
Conservative win (new seat)
Conservative win (new seat)

Gorse Hill

Gorse Hill
Party Candidate Votes %
Labour Co-op Princia Fernandes* 608 45.1
Reform Corey Reeds 308 22.8
Conservative Chichi Morris 226 16.8
Green Kayum Miah 156 11.6
Liberal Democrats Hannah Pajak 50 3.7
Majority 300 22.3
Turnout 1,373 43.2
Registered electors 3,176
Labour Co-op win (new seat)

Haydon Wick

Haydon Wick (3 seats)
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Reform James Head 1,317 36.6 N/A
Reform Anthony Hedges 1,304 36.3 N/A
Labour Co-op Stanka Wilson* 1,190 33.1 –17.2
Reform Paul Rostron 1,152 32.0 N/A
Conservative Leigh Jackson 1,065 29.6 –9.3
Labour Co-op Ravi Venkatesh* 1,032 28.7 –21.6
Conservative John Jackson 1,024 28.5 –10.4
Labour Co-op Leroy Roberts 994 27.6 –22.7
Conservative Sudha Nukana 822 22.9 –16.0
Green Steven Trafford 520 14.5 N/A
Liberal Democrats Phil Norris 369 10.3 +0.8
Turnout 4,053 44.7 +13.7
Registered electors 9,062
Reform gain from Labour
Reform gain from Independent
Labour Co-op hold

Highworth

Highworth (2 seats)
Party Candidate Votes %
Conservative Vijay Manro* 1,516 49.4
Conservative Steve Weisinger* 1,384 45.1
Reform Craig Chafer 780 25.4
Reform Tony Trinder 699 22.8
Labour Co-op Ewan Nicholas 581 18.9
Green Owen Hall 530 17.3
Labour Co-op Tyler Gutteridge 357 11.6
Liberal Democrats Stephen Crocker 289 9.4
Turnout 3,220 48.5
Registered electors 6,634
Conservative win (new seat)
Conservative win (new seat)

Kingshill

Kingshill (2 seats)
Party Candidate Votes %
Labour Co-op Chris Watts* 942 38.2
Labour Co-op Janine Howarth* 929 37.7
Green Rosie Leather 699 28.4
Green Marcus Kittridge 633 25.7
Reform Peter Major 534 21.7
Reform Daphne Chikwere 506 20.5
Conservative Srinivasu Anupindi 298 12.1
Conservative Nima Eftekhari 266 10.8
Liberal Democrats Jamie Taylor 120 4.9
Turnout 2,589 45.5
Registered electors 5,689
Labour Co-op win (new seat)
Labour Co-op win (new seat)

Lower Stratton

Lower Stratton (3 seats)
Party Candidate Votes %
Conservative Roger Smith 1,283 37.4
Conservative Marco Di Pinto 1,280 37.4
Reform Andrew Cripps 1,165 34.0
Reform James Faulkner 1,123 32.8
Reform Justin Bandi 1,114 32.5
Conservative Tom Smith 1,054 31.1
Labour Dave Graves 762 22.5
Green Josh Barclay 719 21.2
Labour Mustafa Dayan 669 19.7
Labour Cesar Hernandez-Martinez 657 19.4
Liberal Democrats Lynda Comber 342 10.1
Turnout 3,825 42.5
Registered electors 8,993
Conservative win (new seat)
Conservative win (new seat)
Reform win (new seat)

Lydiard, Freshbrook & Toothill

Lydiard, Freshbrook & Toothill (3 seats)
Party Candidate Votes %
Reform Matthew Goulding 1,346 34.3
Reform Colin Lovell 1,290 32.8
Reform Cathy Williamson 1,259 32.1
Labour Co-op Leon Grother* 1,173 29.9
Labour Co-op Anna Delvecchio-John 1,156 29.4
Conservative Luke Dawson 990 25.2
Labour Co-op Jane Milner-Barry* 976 24.9
Conservative Caryl Sydney-Smith 941 24.0
Conservative Joel Fletcher-Swindlehurst 877 22.3
Green Glynis Hales 572 14.6
Green Sarah Sawyer 471 12.0
Green Jai Bhatoolaul 466 11.9
Liberal Democrats Fraser McCormick 241 6.1
TUSC Rob Pettefar 24 0.6
Turnout 4,193 42.9
Registered electors 9,759
Reform win (new seat)
Reform win (new seat)
Reform win (new seat)

Old Town & Lawn

Old Town & Lawn (3 seats)
Party Candidate Votes %
Labour Co-op Nadine Watts* 2,006 43.5
Labour Co-op Jim Robbins* 1,840 39.9
Labour Co-op Neil Hopkins* 1,820 39.5
Conservative Vince Ayris 1,216 26.4
Reform Beverley Lewis 993 21.6
Reform Mark Lewis 987 21.4
Conservative Lawrence Elliott* 932 20.2
Reform Richard Symonds 913 19.8
Conservative Bhawna Goyal 845 18.3
Green Bill Hughes 730 15.8
Green Andy Bentley 642 13.9
Green Peter Hebden 586 12.7
Liberal Democrats Ciaran Skinner 312 6.8
Turnout 4,849 50.1
Registered electors 9,681
Labour Co-op win (new seat)
Labour Co-op win (new seat)
Labour Co-op win (new seat)

Parks

Parks (2 seats)
Party Candidate Votes %
Labour Jocelina D'Souza 848 42.0
Reform Sara Godwin 740 36.6
Reform Stephen Halden 659 32.6
Labour Co-op Jamal Miah* 640 31.7
Conservative Gyan Gurung 394 19.5
Green Charli Nettle 322 15.9
Conservative Dev Patel 273 13.5
Liberal Democrats Maggie Hathaway-Mills 166 8.2
Turnout 2,262 32.9
Registered electors 6,867
Labour win (new seat)
Reform win (new seat)

Penhill & Pinehurst

Penhill & Pinehurst (2 seats)
Party Candidate Votes %
Reform Mark Bogard 792 40.2
Reform Martyn Pearce 738 37.4
Labour Co-op John Ballman* 619 31.4
Labour Co-op Sandra Absalom 588 29.8
Conservative Rouchell Cardoso 335 17.0
Green Howard March 316 16.0
Conservative Adam John 277 14.1
Green Elly Taylor 277 14.1
Turnout 2,109 30.9
Registered electors 6,837
Reform win (new seat)
Reform win (new seat)

Priory Vale

Priory Vale (3 seats)
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Vinay Manro* 1,236 38.5 –4.1
Conservative Leanne Stevenson 1,004 31.3 –11.3
Conservative Alex Hughes 998 31.1 –11.5
Reform Adam Brookman 920 28.6 N/A
Reform Chris Fulgoni 829 25.8 N/A
Reform Ravi Tiwari 769 23.9 N/A
Labour Co-op Junab Ali* 688 21.4 –24.4
Labour Co-op Paul Park 681 21.2 –24.6
Labour Co-op Rajhia Ali* 665 20.7 –25.1
Green Ian Edwards* 628 19.6 +12.8
Green Rob Heath* 577 18.0 +11.2
Green Brooke Linnet 454 14.1 +7.3
Liberal Democrats Jim Coupland 185 5.8 +1.8
Turnout 3,532 40.4 +11.3
Registered electors 8,748
Conservative gain from Green
Conservative gain from Green
Conservative gain from Labour Co-op

Queen's Park

Queen's Park (3 seats)
Party Candidate Votes %
Labour Co-op Imtiyaz Shaikh* 1,317 40.4
Labour Co-op Paul Dixon* 1,307 40.1
Labour Co-op Marina Strinkovsky* 1,179 36.1
Green Tom Butcher* 984 30.2
Green Repi Begum* 899 27.6
Green Shad Chokdar 781 23.9
Conservative Livio Camelo 604 18.5
Conservative Inacio Da Silva 604 18.5
Conservative Jenny Jefferies 544 16.7
Reform Paul Collis 475 14.6
Reform Martin England 467 14.3
Reform Terrence Reynolds 434 13.3
Liberal Democrats Abdel Musa 159 4.9
TUSC Mary Quate 31 1.0
Turnout 3,469 44.3
Registered electors 7,824
Labour Co-op win (new seat)
Labour Co-op win (new seat)
Labour Co-op win (new seat)

Rodbourne Cheney

Rodbourne Cheney (2 seats)
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Reform Lawrence Davies 828 47.8 N/A
Reform Derek O'Hanlon 775 44.7 N/A
Labour Co-op Joy Grotzinger 500 28.9 –24.5
Labour Co-op Thomas Smith* 441 25.5 –27.9
Green Grant Holman 306 17.7 +9.0
Conservative Niyi Adekoya 239 13.8 –18.9
Conservative Bose Patrick-Okoh 230 13.3 –19.4
Liberal Democrats Zoe McCormick 114 6.6 +2.2
TUSC Christopher Mahon 31 1.8 N/A
Turnout 1,921 32.0 +3.3
Registered electors 5,997
Reform gain from Labour
Reform gain from Conservative

Rodbourne Ferndale & Western

Rodbourne Ferndale & Western
Party Candidate Votes %
Labour Co-op Ana Fernandes* 1,512 40.9
Labour Co-op Kevin Small* 1,436 38.9
Labour Co-op Jim Grant* 1,351 36.6
Reform Vanessa Boyd 975 26.4
Reform Richard Forbes 928 25.1
Reform Paul Glover 918 24.8
Conservative Natasha Vas 888 24.0
Conservative Kaine Collins 756 20.5
Conservative Bhagyesh Soni 633 17.1
Green Alexandra Petrache 604 16.3
Green Caitlin Pinks 550 14.9
Green James Tansey 537 14.5
Turnout 4,000 42.6
Registered electors 9,390
Labour Co-op win (new seat)
Labour Co-op win (new seat)
Labour Co-op win (new seat)

Shaw & Westlea

Shaw & Westlea (3 seats)
Party Candidate Votes %
Conservative Keith Williams 1,487 35.0
Conservative Suresh Gattapur 1,483 34.9
Conservative Nanadini Singh 1,456 34.2
Labour Co-op Fay Howard* 1,298 30.5
Labour Co-op Rose Llewellyn* 1,207 28.4
Reform Darren Chappell 1,151 27.1
Reform Allan Gibson 1,115 26.2
Reform Glyn Pullen 1,089 25.6
Labour Co-op Josh Owen 1,020 24.0
Green Matt Barnes 602 14.2
Green Ed Colton 513 12.1
Liberal Democrats James Farr 342 8.0
Turnout 4,564 48.1
Registered electors 9,497
Conservative win (new seat)
Conservative win (new seat)
Conservative win (new seat)

South Marston

South Marston
Party Candidate Votes %
Conservative Matthew Vallender* 361 78.8
Reform Eddie Costello 63 13.8
Labour Javes Rodrigues 25 5.5
Liberal Democrats David McCabe 9 2.0
Majority 298 65.0
Turnout 458 59.3
Registered electors 773
Conservative hold

St Andrews East

St Andrews East (2 seats)
Party Candidate Votes %
Conservative Jake Chandler* 1,298 52.1
Conservative Kate Tomlinson 1,281 51.5
Reform Daniel Marland 604 24.3
Reform Brigid Watkis 549 22.1
Labour Co-op Carol Shelley* 483 19.4
Labour Co-op Simon Shelley* 385 15.5
Green Chris Payne 379 15.2
Turnout 2,676 43.6
Registered electors 6,134
Conservative win (new seat)
Conservative win (new seat)

St Andrews West & Tadpole

St Andrews West & Tadpole (2 seats)
Party Candidate Votes %
Conservative Daniel Adams* 1,086 43.5
Conservative Cherie Adams 881 35.3
Reform Marjorie Jefferies 608 24.4
Labour Co-op Jason Mills* 605 24.2
Labour Co-op Theresa Draper 596 23.9
Reform Vincent Williams 593 23.8
Green Syed Bukhari 450 18.0
Liberal Democrats Dawn Pajak 174 7.0
Turnout 2,694 37.6
Registered electors 7,164
Conservative win (new seat)
Conservative win (new seat)

Upper Stratton

Upper Stratton (2 seats)
Party Candidate Votes %
Reform Mark Ratcliffe 970 38.7
Reform Gordon Slade 855 34.1
Conservative David-Oladapo Ibitoye 756 30.2
Labour Co-op Claire Crilly* 736 29.4
Conservative Ola Ibitoye 625 24.9
Labour Co-op Danial Vales 499 19.9
Green Laura Butcher 366 14.6
Liberal Democrats Ben Scott 182 7.3
TUSC Dezzy Scott 23 0.9
Turnout 2,659 41.5
Registered electors 6,405
Reform win (new seat)
Reform win (new seat)

Walcot

Walcot (2 seats)
Party Candidate Votes %
Labour Co-op Emma Bushell* 1,057 47.9
Labour Co-op Abdul Amin* 997 45.2
Reform Terry Nicholls 552 25.0
Reform Unni Nair 502 22.8
Conservative John Lenton 379 17.2
Green Jane Parsons-Hann 356 16.1
Conservative William Sumner 349 15.8
Liberal Democrats Michael Dickinson 219 9.9
Turnout 2,358 41.2
Registered electors 5,727
Labour Co-op win (new seat)
Labour Co-op win (new seat)

Wroughton & Wichelstowe

Wroughton & Wichelstowe (3 seats)
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Matty Courtliff* 1,234 34.7 –3.8
Liberal Democrats Martin Barrett 1,203 33.9 +3.3
Conservative Gayle Cook* 1,107 31.2 –7.3
Liberal Democrats Stan Pajak 1,085 30.5 –0.1
Conservative Matthew Smith 1,046 29.4 –9.1
Liberal Democrats Ela Maksudova 876 24.7 –5.9
Reform Thomas Marshall 872 24.5 N/A
Reform Ben Michalek 808 22.7 N/A
Reform Geoff Thompson 794 22.3 N/A
Green Robbie Easter 403 11.3 –3.9
Green Artemis Pink 359 10.1 –5.1
Labour Sam James 349 9.8 –5.9
Labour Peter Kramer 290 8.2 –7.5
Labour Victor Onyia 232 6.5 –9.2
Turnout 3,748 49.1 +14.2
Registered electors 7,635
Conservative hold
Liberal Democrats hold
Conservative hold

Notes

  1. ↑ Conservative minority
  2. ↑ Did not stand candidates.

References

  1. ↑ "Reform UK relaunch in Swindon under fresh leadership". Swindon 24. Retrieved 8 May 2026.
  2. ↑ "Election timetable in England". GOV.UK. Retrieved 2024-04-07.
  3. ↑ Lennon, Marie (2026-04-09). "Why Swindon's first all-out election in more than a decade matters". BBC News. Retrieved 2026-04-11.
  4. ↑ Lennon, Marie (11 May 2026). "Local elections 2026: Who runs Swindon now?". BBC News. Retrieved 14 August 2026.
  5. ↑ Lennon, Marie (22 May 2026). "Leader elected in council's minority administration". BBC News. Retrieved 14 August 2026.
  6. ↑ Thomas, Aled (3 May 2024). "Labour tightens grip on Swindon council after election triumph". Swindon Advertiser. Retrieved 22 July 2024.
  7. ↑ Robertson, Kirsten (26 November 2025). "Town sees fourth councillor defect to Greens". BBC News. Retrieved 15 December 2025.
  8. ↑ "The Swindon (Electoral Changes) Order 2025". www.legislation.gov.uk. Archived from the original on 2025-12-06. Retrieved 2026-07-05.
  9. ↑ Boothroyd, David. "Crane forward to see a Tory gain". LocalCouncils.co.uk. Retrieved 31 December 2025.
  10. ↑ "Local Elections Archive Project — Rodbourne Cheney Ward". www.andrewteale.me.uk. Retrieved 31 December 2025.
  11. ↑ Boothroyd, David. "Fabian gets the Exe". LocalCouncils.co.uk. Retrieved 31 December 2025.
  12. ↑ Thomas, Aled (29 September 2025). "Swindon councillors announce split from Labour group". Swindon Advertiser. Retrieved 31 December 2025.
  13. ↑ Thomas, Aled (22 October 2025). "Green Party gathers pace as two more Swindon councillors defect". Swindon Advertiser. Retrieved 31 December 2025.
  14. ↑ "Fourth Swindon borough councillor defects from Labour to Greens". BBC News. 26 November 2025. Retrieved 31 December 2025.
  15. ↑ "Swindon's election turnout slumps below 50 - but is up from 2024". Swindon Advertiser. 2026-05-08. Retrieved 2026-05-10.
  16. ↑ "Who won the popular vote in Swindon elections?". Swindon 24 | Swindon News. 2026-05-10. Retrieved 2026-05-10.
  17. ↑ https://www.swindon24.co.uk/news/politics/reform-turns-to-ex-tory-councillor-as-swindon-faces-coalition-style-politics/
  18. ↑ https://www.pollcheck.co.uk/council-projections/swindon/#/swindon
  19. ↑ "Full list of candidates standing for Swindon's local elections in May". Swindon Advertiser. 2026-04-10. Retrieved 2026-04-11.
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